Aether Paradise
by Prince Lutin
Summary: Hilbert is hired by the lovely Lusamine to work at the Aether Paradise, which seems like an arcadia in the midsts of the sea. But Hilbert will soon discover that the Aether Foundation has sinister secrets and Lusamine is anything but lovely. Hilbert also learns of the Ultra Beasts and seeks knowledge all about them.
1. Prologue

_**DISCLAIMER:** I do not own Pokemon, Hilbert, Lusamine, or other canon characters. They are property of Nintendo. I do, however, own some of the characters._

 _This fanfic is rated T for violence, profanity, and mild suggestive themes. Not suitable for those under 13._

 _This fanfic takes place around the same time as the games Pokemon Sun and Moon. It features Hilbert, here aged twenty, is an employee at the Aether Foundation. Note that it is not canon._

* * *

 **THE ESTATE OF NIBIRU-MUL PRESENTS**

 **AETHER: PARADISE OR PRISON?**

 **CHAPTER 1: PROLOGUE**

It had been a while since Hilbert had gone on his adventure with his friends Hilda, Bianca, and Cheren. Hilbert was growing up, and was feeling bored about . He also expressed a wish to travel. Hilda, his cousin and closest friend, decided to accompany him. The two of them were going to stay in Alola for several months. Hilbert went looking for a job so he could support himself.

Eventually, Hilbert found the Aether Paradise. He took a liking to the concept - a paradise for Pokemon to live in. He arrived by boat to Aether Paradise, where he was received by Lusamine, the president of the Aether Foundation. He dressed in a suit to go to his interview.

"Greetings. My name is Lusamine, and I am the president of Aether Foundation. At Aether Paradise, we promise a safe space for all Pokemon, where they can be loved and protected from wretched thieves like Team Skull. I am like a mother to all Pokemon and shower them with my affection. What brings you to

"I would like to work here," said Hilbert. "I'm planning on staying here for several months to help raise money for my family. I love taking care of Pokemon and helping people out. I may be young, but I've had lots of experience as a Trainer. I've worked at Pokemon shelters and taken care of Pokemon at my grandparents' farm. Do you think I'm the right man for the job?"

"Well," said Lusamine, "I've looked at your credentials, and I admit, you seem to be quite fit for this job. I think you're just the kind of person my company needs."

Lusamine reached out her hand and shook Hilbert's hand. The two of them discussed Hilbert's living arrangements.

After about an hour, Hilbert left the office and talked to Hilda.

"I got the job!" he said.

"Congratulations!" said Hilda.

"She even gave me a room in the Aether Paradise," said Hilbert, " _and_ I get to have free food at the cafeteria."

"That sounds great!" said Hilda. "I've got a job too. I'm going to be helping the Alolan branch of the International Police - they work with the Aether Foundation, so we'll see each other often."

"Cool," said Hilbert. "I'm also going to be starting tomorrow. Right now, I'm going to be going to my suite to unpack my things."

Hilbert did some exploring. He became acquainted with several other members of the Aether Foundation. They gave Hilbert his uniform. He then went to take a look around the conservation area. There were plenty of Pokemon, and all of them seemed very happy.

"This seems like a nice place," said Hilbert. "The Pokemon are happy, and the employees are happy. I'm going to be having the time of my life here."

That night, Hilbert e-mailed his parents and told them the good news. His parents wished him luck. He poured himself a glass of milk and added some chocolate powder to make himself some chocolate milk. He then took out some bread, peanut butter, and strawberry jam to make himself a sandwich. Hilbert always liked to go to bed on a full stomach. After drinking his milk and eating his sandwich, Hilbert felt tired.

"Now it's time for me to hit the hay," said Hilbert. "Tomorrow's going to be a big day."

Hilbert stripped down to a T-shirt and a pair of boxers, and then he climbed into bed. He relaxed there until he went to sleep. Hilbert was in for a great adventure...


	2. Welcome to Aether Paradise

**CHAPTER 2: WELCOME TO AETHER PARADISE**

Hilbert woke up to a dright, sunny day. He put on his Aether Foundation employee uniform, which had been given to him by the foundation.

First, Hilbert went to the conservation area, where he was to be received by Wicke. Hilbert took the elevator to the conservation area. Once he reached it, he walked forward and looked around.

"Whoa," said Hilbert. "This place is amazing!"

Hilbert walked towards the north end. A curvy woman with purple hair walked forward.

"Greetings, new recruit!" she said. "I am Gloria Wicke, the assistant branch chief of the Aether Foundation. But you can call me Wicke! Everyone calls me by my last name."

"Greetings, Wicke!" said Hilbert. "Hilbert Klump, at your service."

"At Aether Foundation, we care for Pokemon," said Wicke. "People like Team Skull have been harassing Pokemon, but here we have a safe space for Pokemon. Here, we provide care and kindness to all Pokemon."

Hilbert took a walk down some stairs. There was a beautiful garden with flowers of every color. Pokemon were frolicking in the flowers and drinking from a pool of water. The sound of happy, peaceful music filled the air.

A Cutiefly spotted Hilbert and flew over to him. It carried a red flower on its forelegs and gave it to Hilbert.

"Meep meep!" it said.

"Why thank you!" said Hilbert.

"Meep meep!" said the Cutiefly. Its eyes shone like a reflection in a pool.

Wicke walked over.

"That's Snowdrop," said Wicke. "He and his mother, Rosella, were rescued from Po Town after Team Skull took it over. Snowdrop was still an egg at the time, and he was hatched here. The two of them have been inseparable ever since."

A Ribombee flew close to Hilbert and Wicke and hovered near the Cutiefly.

"Is this your mother?" Hilbert asked Snowdrop.

"Meep meep!" said Snowdrop, signalling a 'yes'.

"Bzzz bzzz," said Rosella, embracing Snowdrop.

Hilbert turned to Wicke.

"Do I have any assignments today?" he asked her.

"Nothing major is on the agenda for today," said Wicke. "I'm planning on some assignments for you and other employees."

"I'll be looking forward to them," said Hilbert.

Snowdrop started to fly around Hilbert, buzzing happily.

"Meep meep!" he said.

"Looks like Snowdrop's taken a liking to you," said Wicke.

"I wouldn't mind looking after the little guy," said Hilbert.

"Then it's official," said Wicke. "You'll be in charge of looking after Snowdrop. He's pretty easy to take care of - he likes sweet things, he enjoys being around flowers, and he loves affection. Rosella does most of the looking after him, so you won't have to do too much." She pointed to a little house that resembled a birdhouse. "That house is where Snowdrop and Rosella sleep. Snowdrop will normally go to bed around sunset, though he's occasionally awake at night. I knitted him a little blanket to keep him warm."

Snowdrop buzzed around.

"Meep meep! Meep meep!" he said.

"Looks like he's happy," said Hilbert.

"He is happy most of the time," said Wicke, "though if his mother's not around for a long time, he'll start to cry. If his mother's going to be absent for a while, that would be a good time to keep him company."

Hilbert heard the clock strike twelve.

"It's noon," said Wicke. "Would you like to go down to lunch?"

"Sure," said Hilbert. "I'm getting hungry."

"There's some people I'd like you to meet," said Wicke. "They'll be helping you out."

Wicke led Hilbert to the cafeteria. She brought him to a table where four other people were sitting. The first one was a tall guy with lavender hair styled like Hilbert's. The second one was a heavy-set woman with tan skin and pink hair. The third was a short woman with dark skin and periwinkle blue hair in box braids. The fourth was a guy with longish blond hair.

"These people will be in your unit," said Wicke. "Since the Aether Foundation has hundreds of employees from all over, we divide our organization into units. I'll let you get acquainted." Wicke walked away.

The lavender-haired guy looked at Hilbert.

"Hello!" he said. "My name is Ricardo Gallegos. I'm from Aspertia City. Where are you from?"

"I'm from Nuvema Town," said Hilbert.

"Small world!" said Ricardo.

"I know!" said Hilbert.

"Next to me is Kiana Wong," said Ricardo, turning to the pink-haired woman. "She's from Heahea Town."

"Hello!" said Kiana.

"Hello!" said Hilbert.

"I'm Allison McClure," said the blue-haired girl. "I'm from Opelucid City."

"Another Unovan," said Hilbert. "Glad to meet you!"

The blond guy spoke up. He had a noticeable accent.

"Dzień dobry!" he said. "My name is Emil Lisowski. I'm from Warsaw."

"Wow," said Hilbert. "You've come a long way to get here."

Hilbert sat down.

"How long are you guys here for?" he asked them.

"Three of us are stationed here for about a year," said Ricardo. "Then we go home - except for Kiana, who's pretty much permanent. Emil just came back from vacation - he was visiting his family."

"So," said Hilbert, "do you like Alola?"

"Yes," said Ricardo.

"Tak," said Emil.

"I sure do!" said Allison.

"I live in Alola," said Kiana, "so naturally I'd say yes."

"What do you like best about Alola?" asked Hilbert.

"That's a good one..." said Ricardo. "I guess I'll pick Hau'oli City. It's so vibrant!"

"I like the market in Konikoni City," said Allison.

"I like the flowers," said Emil.

"I like the food," said Kiana.

Hilbert's stomach growled.

"Speaking of food," said Hilbert, "I think we should all get something to eat."

"Agreed," said everyone else.

The five of them went to get food and had lunch together.


	3. At the Pool

**CHAPTER 3: AT THE POOL**

After lunch, Hilbert walked back to his room. Emil and Ricardo came with him.

"I'll show you guys my room," said Hilbert.

Hilbert led the two guys to his room, where he opened the door to give the two a look inside.

"It's so nice," said Ricardo.

"Hey!" said Emil. "Your room is next to mine."

Hilbert chuckled.

"I didn't even realize that," said Ricardo.

"Ricardo and I share a room," said Emil. "Do you have a roommate?"

"Nah," said Hilbert. "My room is a one-person suite."

"You're lucky," said Ricardo. "Why not meet us at the pool? Bring your swimsuit!"

"Sure!" said Hilbert.

Hilbert went back to his room and changed into his swimsuit, a purple and black speedo. He put on a bathrobe and took a walk to the pool area, where he met Emil and Ricardo outside. The two guys had white speedos with the Aether Foundation logo on them and matching bathrobes.

"Let's kick it!" said Hilbert.

The three guys went in the pool, where they swam around and worked on their laps. Then the three of them chilled out on land.

"So," said Hilbert, "what do you guys like to do?"

"Well..." said Emil. "I like figure skating. I wish I could go professional, but I'm only an amateur. I'll never be as good as Plushenko."

"I'm sure you can be as good as him," said Hilbert. "You just have to practice."

"It's hard to practice here," said Emil. "There's no ice rink, and besides, it's too hot."

The three of them laughed.

"As for me," said Ricardo, "I like computers, books, and fixing things. I work as a carpenter at home - I'm here because I want to make some extra money."

"So..." said Hilbert. "What are your families like? I live with my dad Conrad and my mom Flora. I've got an older brother named Wolfgang. He's in the military. Right now he's stationed in Kuwait. I also have an older sister named Frieda."

"I'm one of eight," said Ricardo. "I've got four brothers and three sisters. I'm the baby of the family. I've got lots of nieces and nephews too."

"I'm also the youngest," said Emil. "I have a big sister named Paulina."

"Looks like we have that in common," said Hilbert. "So, where can I get one of those Aether Foundation swimsuits?"

"I can get one for you," said Emil. "I have an extra one. We're the same size, so I'm sure it will fit you. I like the Aether Foundation swimsuits, but I normally wear the ones I brought from home."

"I understand," said Hilbert. "With our own swimsuits, at least we know which ones belong to whom." He turned to Ricardo. "I forgot to tell you what I like. I like video games, anime, drawing, cooking, and taking care of Pokemon."

"I love video games!" said Ricardo.

"Me too!" said Emil.

Hilbert yawned.

"I'm getting tired..." said Hilbert.

"You look kind of red," said Ricardo. "Mind if I put on some sunscreen?"

"Sure," said HIlbert.

Ricardo put sunscreen on Hilbert's arms, legs, and chest.

"Thanks," said Hilbert. "So, have you got any assignments?"

"I've got a few," said Emil. "There's only one for tonight. Since you're assigned to Snowdrop, I'd like you to check on him tonight after dinner."

"Sounds reasonable to me," said Hilbert.

"We have more assignments," said Emil. "I've got to help Allison do inventory count."

"I've got to help Kiana on kitchen duty," said Ricardo.

"But for now we can relax," said Emil.

Hilbert, Ricardo, and Emil decided to relax.

* * *

In the meantime, Lusamine and Wicke were in Lusamine's office, discussing some important manners.

"Wicke," said Lusamine, "did you get information about Nihilego?"

"I've gotten as much information as I can," said Wicke.

Lusamine looked at Wicke's papers, analyzing all the information Wicke jotted down.

"This won't do," she said. "I need more information than this!"

"That's everything I could find," said Wicke. "I don't expect Nihilego to appear at a beckon call. This stuff takes a while."

Lusamine sighed.

"Very well, then," said Lusamine. "You are dismissed."

Wicke made her way to the door.

"Do you need me to do anything else?" Wicke asked Lusamine.

"Well..." said Lusamine, "can you get me a glass of champagne? I'm thirsty."

"Sure..." said Wicke.

Wicke left Lusamine's office.


	4. Feeding Snowdrop

_**A/N:** Sorry about the long delay! I'm writing a number of fics, so I can't update all the time!_

* * *

 **CHAPTER 4: FEEDING SNOWDROP**

That night, after dinner, Hilbert went to feed Snowdrop. He brought a few Poke Beans - Alola's sweet specialty. He went over to where the Cutiefly and his mother were.

"Time for your meal, Snowdrop," said Hilbert.

Hilbert held out his hand towards Snowdrop, who flew near the Poke Beans and gobbled them up with his proboscis.

"Meep meep!" said Snowdrop.

"You're welcome," said Hilbert.

Hilbert stroked Snowdrop gently. Snowdrop liked the affection that he was getting from Hilbert.

"You're such a sweetie," said Hilbert.

"Meep meep!" said Snowdrop. "Meep meep!"

Hilbert reached out his right thumb and finger and gently shook one of Snowdrop's forelegs.

"Meep meep!" said Snowdrop.

"I love you too, Snowdrop," said Hilbert. "I can't stay too much longer. I've got to get back to work."

"Meep meep," said Snowdrop sadly.

"Don't worry," said Hilbert. "I'll be back tomorrow. See you later!"

Hilbert left the conservation area and went down to the laboratories. Wicke had an assignment for him. Hilbert went into one of the rooms, where he met up with Wicke.

"I've been expecting you," said Wicke.

"Hello, Wicke," said Hilbert.

"I have an assignment for you," said Wicke. "On Wednesday, I'm bringing a small team of employees to the woods northwest of Iki Town, located on Melemele Island. The woods are known as Wahahee-Ka-Laau Forest. You can access them via the Mahalo Trail. They're home to Sudowoodo. We're going to bring you along with us so we can take notes on the Sudowoodo. It's their mating season, so we're going to be observing their courtships."

"Sounds neat," said Hilbert.

"You'll be going with several people from your unit," said Wicke. "Emil, Allison, and Kiana are going to be on the excursion. Ricardo has to stay behind since he has another project to work on. There will also be other people whom you haven't met yet."

"Sounds interesting," said Hilbert. "What should I bring with me?"

"Bring a notebook and a pen," said Wicke.

"I've got several blank notebooks," said Hilbert, "and plenty of pens."

"It seems that you're right on top of things!" said Wicke. "I'll let you call it a night."

"Okay, Wicke," said Hilbert. "Goodnight!"

"Goodnight, Hilbert," said Wicke.

Hilbert left the laboratories and went back to his suite, where he changed into his pajamas. He decided to call Hilda.

"Hello, Hilda," said Hilbert.

"Hey, little cuz!" said Hilda.

"How's the police job?" asked Hilbert.

"So far, so good," said Hilda. "I haven't started yet. I met Officer Nanu, the kahuna of Ula'ula Island."

"Cool!" said Hilbert. "I've heard about him. What's he like?"

"He's pretty cool," said Hilda. "He's kinda lazy, though - and very sarcastic. But he's really nice. He's not working with the International Police anymore, but he came here since he wanted to see me."

"I'm not surprised at all that he'd want to see you," said Hilbert. "After all, you're the one who took on Team Plasma and defeated Ghetsis."

"I know," said Hilda. "How's things at the Aether Foundation?"

"I'm glad you asked," said Hilbert. "It's really awesome. I've been hanging out with my fellow employees. In two days I'll be going to Melemele Island to help research on the local Sudowoodo."

"Sounds interesting," said Hilda. "I talked to Nate on Facebook last night."

"Nate?" asked Hilbert. "You mean our Nate? The one from Aspertia?"

"That's the one," said Hilda. "He said it was so cool that I got a job with the International Police. He told me he wished he could join too, but he said he can't handle the workload."

"What's Nate up to now?" asked Hilbert.

"He's got a job at the Japanese buffet in Aspertia," said Hilda. "He's entertaining them while wearing a ninja costume."

"That sounds interesting," said Hilbert. "He must be having a lot of fun."

"He is," said Hilda.

"How is Cheren doing?" asked Hilbert.

"He's doing fine," said Hilda. "I talked to him on Facebook today. He's busy at the Gym as usual. Bianca's doing good as well."

"I'm glad," said Hilbert.

"Okay," said Hilda. "I've got to go now. See you later!"

"Bye!" said Hilbert.

Hilbert and Hilda hung up.

Hilbert looked out at the nighttime sky. He was glad that his first day at the Aether Foundation went well. Soon he was going to be starting field work, and he was really looking forward to it, learning about the various Pokemon that lived in Alola.


	5. The First Friction

**CHAPTER 5: THE FIRST FRICTION**

Tuesday was pretty easy for Hilbert. He fed Snowdrop twice a day, gathered some notes on Sudowoodo, and hung out with Emil and Ricardo. He also talked to Hilda, who was busy doing research for the International Police.

When Wednesday came, Hilbert boarded the ferry to Melemele Island. He gazed out the window, looking at the sea.

"Today's going to be an eventful day," said Wicke. "I'm going to split you guys up into teams so we can each cover different parts of the forest. First we'll land at Hahai Town. Then we'll get "

"I'm looking forward to it," said Hilbert.

"Me too," said Kiana.

Hilbert looked at Emil, who was holding a pot with a lid and handle.

"What's in the pot?" asked Hilbert.

"The pot?" asked Emil. "I cooked some borscht last night."

"What's borscht?" asked Kiana.

"Borscht is a kind of soup," said Hilbert. "It's usually made from beets and it comes from Eastern Europe."

"Hilbert's so smart," said Emil. "I made it cold since it's very hot out."

"I actually like borscht," said Hilbert. "A lot of people think it tastes like glue, but I don't mind."

Allison looked at Emil, noticing that he was turning a little red.

"Does the heat bother you?" she asked him.

"Not really," said Emil. "Where I'm from, it gets hot during the summer. It's nice to have some cold borscht to cool me down."

"I'm not a soup person," said Allison, "but I guess I'll try your soup."

Eventually, Hilbert and the rest of the group made land and took the bus to Iki Town. Hilbert looked around. There were twelve people in total, including Wicke herself.

"Okay, guys," said Wicke. "I'm going to split you up into teams of four. The first team will consist of me, Allison McClure, Kiana Wong, and Laura Thompson."

Laura, a woman in her thirties with pale skin, long blonde hair, and green eyes, walked over to Wicke, Allison, and Kiana. She spoke in an Australian accent.

"I'll be most delighted, mates," she said. "I can spot a Sudowoodo from a mile away."

"Now," said Wicke, "the second team will consist of Ricardo Gallegos, Ryan Pfeiffer, Keola Araki, and Ikuko Nagasawa."

The four of them formed a group. Ryan was a tall, skinny guy with long wavy brown hair and blue eyes. Keola was a heavy-set guy with tan skin, green hair, and green eyes. Ikuko was a short woman in her forties with dark blue hair and dark blue eyes.

"We'll be glad to go together," said Ryan. He spoke in a Midwestern accent.

"I'm glad to hear!" said Wicke. "The third team will consist of Hilbert Klump, Emil Lisowski, Vanessa Rizzo, and Sebastian Hargreaves."

Hilbert and Emil walked up to and Sebastian. Vanessa was a short woman with olive skin, short, curly black hair, and glasses over her brown eyes. Sebastian was a tall, pale guy with light brown hair in a crew cut and blue eyes.

"Are you up to the challenge?" said Hilbert.

Emil and Vanessa laughed, but Sebastian shrugged.

"Whatever," he said. He spoke in a British accent.

"Okay," said Wicke. "Now that we've got all the teams, I'll assign areas to explore. My team will go north, the second team will go west, and the third team will go south. We'll meet up in a few hours to have lunch."

Hilbert, Emil, Vanessa, and Sebastian took the southern path, down to a sparsely wooded area near a pond. Hilbert, Emil, and Vanessa observed the Sudowoodo while Sebastian sulked near a wiliwili tree.

Vanessa looked from her binoculars to where there were two Sudowoodo, a male and a female.

"Looks like they're doing some kind of dance," she said. "The male is waving his arms in a heart-shaped pattern."

Hilbert wrote down Vanessa's observation in the notes.

"Isn't this exciting?" said Emil, feeling full of energy as he watched the Sudowoodo dance.

"Ah, shut yer gob, Emil," said Sebastian.

Emil turned to Hilbert and Vanessa.

"Sebastian's kinda cranky," said Emil.

"He seems mean," said Hilbert.

"Not surprising at all," said Vanessa. "Sebastian's always like that. He's not exactly the warm, welcoming type of guy."

Hilbert looked at Sebastian.

"Sebastian!" said Hilbert. "That's a wiliwili tree! The ancient Alolan royalty used them to make surfboards."

Sebastian sighed.

"We're not here to study the trees, Hilbert," he said.

"I thought the tree would be good," said Hilbert. "The Sudowoodo like the wiliwili trees. There's one over there gathering seeds from it. They form a part of the Sudowoodo's diet." Hilbert was writing down his notes.

"I don't care," said Sebastian. "Wicke said that we were supposed to collect notes on the Sudowoodo not the whatever trees."

"But you're not writing down notes," said Hilbert.

"I don't need to," said Sebastian. "I've set up an offering of food to attract them so I can take their picture." Hilbert looked at a patch where there were passion fruits with seeds scattered.

"Is it going to work?" asked Hilbert.

"Of course it will work, you muppet," said Sebastian. "There's a Sudowoodo over there eating." Sebastian took out a grapefruit and started to eat it.

"I don't think that's a good idea," said Hilbert. "Sudowoodo in Alola are said to love the taste of grapefruit. They'll chase people who have them just to steal them."

"That's ridiculous," said Sebastian. "Grapefruit are not even native to Alola. Why would they even..."

The Sudowoodo that was eating the passion fruit immediately smelled the grapefruit and started to chase him.

"Arrrrgh!" he said. "Stop it, you bloody tree! I'll get you for this!"

Hilbert, Emil, and Vanessa laughed.

"I guess we would be having fun after all," said Vanessa. "I thought this trip would be really boring."

"That Sebastian is so funny," said Emil.

Eventually, Sebastian tripped over a branch and fell face first into the pond. He was soaking wet.

Sebastian got up from the muddy pond and looked angrily at Hilbert, Emil, and Vanessa, who were all laughing. Hilbert then looked at Sebastian.

"I think we better stop laughing," said Vanessa. Hilbert stopped, but Emil continued laughing. Vanessa shot an angry look at Emil to make him stop.

"Sorry about that, Sebastian," said Hilbert.

Sebastian stomped out of the water.

"Look at me..." said Sebastian. "I'm a MESS!" He looked at Hilbert. "YOU! You better get back to work, or I'll make sure you've been sent to Coventry!"

"Huh?" said Hilbert.

"What you did wasn't funny," said Sebastian. He looked at Emil. "And you! I've had enough of your annoying laugh. I've had to deal with it so many times." Sebastian bonked Emil on the head and walked away.

"What's wrong with Sebastian?" Hilbert asked Vanessa.

"He's just a bit cranky," said Vanessa. "He's like that a lot. He's also very sarcastic. But believe me, he isn't bad to the bone. He has redeeming qualities too. You shouldn't take it too hard." Vanessa was right. Though Sebastian was angry at Hilbert and Emil, deep down he felt that he was too harsh on them and wished to apologize.

"You're right," said Hilbert. "I feel that it's kinda my fault too for focusing on that wiliwili tree."

"I'm sorry too," said Emil. "I shouldn't have been laughing."

"Emil's really silly," said Vanessa. "He tends to laugh at the worst possible times."

"I don't mind," said Hilbert. "He's one of my favorite co-workers. Where did Sebastian get that grapefruit?"

"Ikuko brought a bunch of them with her," said Vanessa. "She's using them to make fresh-squeezed grapefruit juice. Wisely, she left most of hers on the boat."

"I figured," said Hilbert. "It's always good to see people plan ahead."

Vanessa laughed.

"I'll go help Sebastian clean up," she said. "You and Emil go jot down more notes."

Vanessa went to help Sebastian clean up, while Hilbert and Emil went back to work.


	6. Cosmog

**CHAPTER 6: COSMOG**

When the group got back to Aether Paradise that evening, Wicke collected all the notes.

"Congratulations, everyone!" she said. "Thanks for your cooperation! I'm going to bring these notes to the lab for analysis."

"It was a pleasure working with you," said Hilbert.

"You all are dismissed now," said Wicke. "Goodnight!"

"Goodnight, Wicke," said everyone.

The group dispersed. Hilbert walked back to his room and changed into a T-shirt and shorts. After half an hour, Hilbert heard a knock on the door.

"Who could that be?" asked Hilbert.

Hilbert opened the door. It was Ricardo and Emil.

"Hello!" said Hilbert.

"We wanted to visit you," said Emil.

Ricardo and Emil stepped inside.

"Did you enjoy your first expedition?" Ricardo asked Hilbert.

"It was fun," said Hilbert. "Though I'm a little troubled."

"What's troubling you?" asked Ricardo.

"Sebastian," said Hilbert. "I feel like he doesn't like me."

"He doesn't like me, either," said Emil. "Come to think of it, he doesn't like that many people here."

"You'll learn to get along," said Ricardo.

"I hope so," said Hilbert.

"Now that we're done with that," said Emil, "want some dessert?" Emil had a box of Entenmann's chocolate chip cookies. "I brought these at the store last week. I've been saving them for the occasion."

"Sure," said Hilbert.

The three guys had dessert together.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the darkest depths of the laboratories, Lusamine was observing a Cosmog, which was floating in a test tube. This lab was a top-secret lab, where only certain staff were allowed. Lusamine kept tight security on it for most of the day. The laboratory could only be accessed with a certain key card.

"This Cosmog is full of potential," she said. "With its psychic powers, I can use it to open the Ultra Wormhole. I've been studying this thing for four years and yet research has made me realize that it trusts anyone whom it comes into contact with."

One of Lusamine's scientists walked over.

"I have completed five pages of notes on Cosmog," said the scientist. "According to my notes, Cosmog becomes weak after using its powers. l We have to preserve it and only use it when the time is right."

"That may be so," said another scientist next to him, "but there surely must be countless other Cosmog through that wormhole. We need to use it for research so we can find other Cosmog and how they relate to this one."

"I agree with you," said Lusamine, looking at the second scientist. "Anyway, we need to feed Cosmog right now. Give me the energy potion so I can feed Cosmog."

"Don't mind if I do," said the second scientist. He gave Lusamine the potion.

Lusamine held the energy potion towards Cosmog and fed it to it. Swallowing the potion felt like drinking milk when you have stomach ulcers. Cosmog let out a painful scream.

"Be quiet, you ungrateful wretch!" said Lusamine, shaking her fist at Cosmog.

A few minutes later, Cosmog's innards soothed, and it felt stronger.

"This potion may cause pain," said Lusamine, "but it's for Cosmog's own good. It is said to make its psychic powers stronger. I will find a way to open that Ultra Wormhole and send more Ultra Beasts into the world, even if it's the last thing I ever do."

Cosmog looked at Lusamine with its beady blue eyes. It was beginning to question the trust it had in her.


	7. Ice Cream

_**A/N:** Sorry about the delay! Sometimes I take breaks from fanfics._

* * *

 **CHAPTER 7: ICE CREAM**

The next day, Hilbert got about his usual work, remembering to feed his Cutiefly friend Snowdrop. During lunchtime, Hilbert sat with his usual group. Hilbert had gotten some pizza to eat. He saw that Kiana was reading a sports magazine.

"Hey, look!" said Kiana, reading the magazine. "Emil would like this. Evgeni Plushenko is endorsing a vodka-flavored ice cream."

Emil looked at the magazine.

"Cool!" he said.

Hilbert looked at Emil's plate.

"That pizza would look good with some vodka ice cream," said Hilbert.

"I thought you didn't drink, Hilbert," said Allison. "And besides, Emil is Polish, not Russian."

Hilbert froze for a second.

"That's true," he said.

"Aw..." said Emil. "You make Plushy sad."

"I don't think he cares whether or not someone buys ice cream," said Hilbert. "Hey, do you think it helps him do quads? You have to do quads if you want to win the gold medal."

Everyone laughed.

"Do you do any sports, Hilbert?" Ricardo asked Hilbert.

"I don't play any sports," said Hilbert. "Never really been athletically inclined. I do have a bike and a skateboard."

"I like skateboarding," said Kiana.

"Me too!" said Emil.

"There's a skate park near Konikoni City," said Kiana. "Maybe we should go."

"That would be cool!" said Hilbert. "We should go there when we have spare time."

Now, since Hilbert has had enough focus, we're going to do a little focus on Hilda. Hilda was going to meet Looker and Anabel, two of the important members of the International Police.

"Good afternoon, mademoiselle," said Looker. "My name is..." The sound of a huge ship taking off filled the air. "But you may call me by my code name, Looker."

"I'm Anabel," said Anabel.

"Glad to meet you," said Hilda.

Anabel, Looker, and Hilda talked for a few minutes. They got to know all about Hilda and her interests.

"There's an assignment we need you for," said Anabel. "It's about Team Skull. They have been harvesting Shiny Pokemon in the Wela Volcano Park to sell on the black market."

A very tall young man with parted turquoise hair and a turquoise mustache walked up to them. He wore a dark blue uniform similar to Anabel's black uniform.

"This is Osman Sarıkaya," said Anabel, "or Dondurma, as he is known by his code name. He specializes in International Police cases that involve Shiny Pokemon. He may be young, but he's already helped rescue Shiny Pokemon back in his home country of Turkey."

"Merhaba!" said Osman. "I'm looking forward to be working with you, Hilda."

"Thanks," said Hilda. She shook Osman's hand. "Should I call you by your code name?"

"You don't have to," said Osman.

"I will accompany you to the park," said Anabel. She turned to Osman. "Just note that, being a volcano, there are a lot of Fire-type Pokemon there." She turned to Hilda. "Osman is an Ice-type Trainer, so he might face some difficulty against the stronger Fire-types there."

"I can handle them," said Hilda. "I was the one who creamed Ghetsis. These Skull bastards will be a piece of cake."

"I've been given permission to drive one of the International Police's Jeeps," said Osman. "It takes about one and a half hours to get there from the base."

"Don't forget your research notes!" said Anabel.

"We won't," said Hilda. "We'll need lots of notes."

Soon after, Hilda and Osman were on the road.

"So, Osman," said Hilda, "where in Turkey are you from?"

"I'm from Adana," said Osman.

"Cool," said Hilda. "What Pokemon do you have?"

"I use Ice-type Pokemon," said Osman. "I have a Vanilluxe, a Froslass, and a Crabominable. Crabominable assists me with missions. Looker told me he used to have a Croagunk assist him."

"I can see," said Hilda, looking in the back of the Jeep, where a Crabominable was sitting. It took up both of the back seats.

Osman laughed.

"Pelin doesn't like being in her Poke Ball," said Osman. "Sometimes, she has to, since it's impractical for a Pokemon weighing more than twice as much as me to be walking outside it, but usually she tries not to get in."

"I use a variety of Pokemon," said Hilda. "I have too many to count. I started out with a Snivy. Now he's a Serperior. I've got Ice-types among them."

"Ice-type Pokemon are very rare in Alola," said Osman. "It's because of the tropical climate. Where I come from, they're common in the mountains, and often venture to lower elevations during the wintertime when it gets cold."

"There's only one cold mountain in Alola," said Hilda, "and that's Mount Lanakila on Ula'ula Island. It's always full of snow." Hilda looked to the ocean. "I have a cousin who recently joined the Aether Foundation. Yesterday he helped collect some notes on Sudowoodo that live on Melemele Island. I'll take you to meet him next time we go to the Aether Paradise."

"I'd love to meet him," said Osman. "My fiancee Yaprak works in the International Police as well. Currently, she's stationed in Almia."

"Do you keep in touch?" asked Hilda.

"Of course!" said Osman. "We talk to each other on Facebook every night."

"So," said Hilda, "how did you get your code name?"

"Dondurma is the Turkish word for ice cream," said Osman. "It's because I eat a lot of ice cream."


	8. Shoobies Vs Bogans

**CHAPTER 8: SHOOBIES VS. BOGANS**

As Hilda and Osman had to do a lot of investigating, they had to stay overnight. Hilda decided to sleep outside to keep watch, while Osman rented a room in the motel. The good thing was that Osman had gotten down lots of notes.

The next day, Hilbert and his unit had some time off. Kiana asked Wicke if she could take several people in her unit quad biking on Melemele Island.

"Alola's famous for its quad bike trails," she said. "Ms. Wicke used to drive them all the time when she was younger. I've already cleared it with her."

"I'm willing to go," said Hilbert. "I learned how to ride quad bikes back in Unova."

"Don't forget to bring your swimsuits," said Kiana. "We're going to the beaches on Kala'e Bay while we're there."

Now cut to Melemele Island. Kiana took Hilbert, Allison, Ricardo, Emil, and Sebastian.

"So," said Kiana, "I've rented a quad bike for each of us."

"Which trail do we take?" asked Allison.

"We take the trail over the northern cliffs," said Kiana. "Just be careful as you don't want to fall off the cliff."

Everyone except Sebastian laughed.

"I'm not going with you guys," said Sebastian. "I don't need Emil tagging along."

"What?" said Emil. "Surely you want to come see Kala'e Bay."

"No thanks, kielbasa breath!" said Sebastian. "I do what I want. I don't want you bothering me."

Emil whimpered.

"Hey!" said Hilbert. "Don't be rude to us."

Kiana showed the quad bikes to the group. Each bike was blue and came with a helmet and a number.

"I see Sebastian's got number 1," said Emil. "He must be number 1."

"Just like Smitty Werbenjagermanjensen," said Ricardo.

"Put a sock in it, Ricardo," said Sebastian.

"Suit yourself," said Allison.

Sebastian got on his quad bike, put on his helmet, and pointed the quad bike towards Kawao Town, the nearest town.

"I'm going to look for civilization," he said, "away from these cliffs."

Kiana sighed.

"That Sebastian..." she said.

Everyone else got on their quad bikes, put on their helmet, and took off in the opposite direction.

"What's wrong with Sebastian?" Hilbert asked Ricardo.

"Not sure," said Ricardo. "Sebastian's always like that."

"Well he didn't have to be rude to Emil," said Hilbert.

"I'm fine," said Emil. "He's called me all sorts of names."

"There's a lot to see," said Kiana. "If you go down the path near the koa tree, it leads to the Dressler family farm. The Dresslers are known for growing sweet potatoes. Up that way leads to Melemele Meadow, and over there's the river."

Hilbert and his co-workers rode along the path along the cliffs, going up to see Melemele Meadow. Hilbert enjoyed looking at all the flowers and gazing at the Cutiefly and Oricorio that lived there. The group took a while to gaze at the flowers, and then got back on their quad bikes and rode down the path to Kala'e Bay.

"The water's supposed to be great," said Allison. "Just don't worry about all the shoobies." Allison looked at the tourists in the area.

"What are shoobies?" asked Emil.

"Shoobies are tourists," said Hilbert. "Or people who wear shoes on the beach."

"Technically, we're shoobies too," said Ricardo.

Everyone laughed.

The group changed into their swimsuits. Hilbert, Ricardo, and Emil wore speedos while Kiana and Allison wore one-piece swimsuits. Hilbert was the first one to get in the water, followed by Emil. The rest of them got in as well.

"Ah...refreshing!" said Hilbert. "It feels great!"

"The water around Kala'e Bay is always warm," said Ricardo. "The waves here can get really big."

"Perfect for surfing," said Hilbert.

"Do you surf?" asked Ricardo.

"I do," said Hilbert, "but I'm not that good at it - well, not good enough to surf Alolan waves. My friends Nate and Rosa are really good surfers. They'd be itching to ride these waves."

"I don't know how to surf," said Emil. "There's no ocean where I live."

"The next three days will have a lot of work for us," said Kiana, "but after that we'll have some free time."

"I think I'll bring my swim trunks," said Hilbert. "Surfing in speedos is just...wrong."

"Unless you're one of those dopey surf lifesavers from Australia," said Ricardo.

Hilbert cringed.

"I still have nightmares from watching _Pokemon Surf Blokes_ ," said Hilbert. "That show's terrible."

"Agreed," said Emil.

"It's such a dumb show," said Kiana. "I can't stand surf blokes. They act so...fruity."

"Not to mention they drop the C word like every five seconds," said Hilbert.

"Like, excuuuuuse me, c*nts!" said a voice.

Three guys wearing maroon speedos, surf lifesaver caps, and spandex tops paddled on their boards towards the group. Their speedos said "bloody c*nts" on the backside.

"Uh-oh," said Emil. "I didn't know they were here."

"What did you say about us, you c*nts?" said one of them.

"Nothing," said Hilbert.

"Who the hell are you guys?" asked Allison.

"We're lifesavers from Melbourne," said one of them. "We're on vacation. I'm Ziggy O'Connell, this is Banjo Trowbridge, and this is Lachlan Wilcox. What do you buggers want?"

"Oh no," said Hilbert.

"And who the fuck are you c*nts?" asked Banjo.

"We're with the Aether Foundation," said Hilbert. "We work for Lusamine."

"Out of our way, you bogans," said Ziggy.

"You guys aren't ones to talk, bogans," said Hilbert.

The surf lifesavers looked at each other. Banjo scratched his beard and shaggy hair and then grabbed Hilbert's hair.

"Take that, you maggot!" he said.

"Let go of him!" said Emil.

"Be quiet!" said Lachlan. He burped in Emil's face.

"I think we need help," said Kiana.

The surf lifesavers looked at each other again.

"My good c*nts," said Ziggy, "these dickheads are getting really annoying."

"We need more to drink, c*nts" said Banjo.

"Agreed," said Lachlan.

Hilbert looked out to sea. A yacht with the Aether Foundation logo was passing by. Lusamine was on board, wearing a white sun dress, white sunglasses, and a large white sun hat. Wicke was accompanying her, as was a female employee who was driving the yacht. Kiana called out to Lusamine.

"Wicke!" she said. "We need your help!"

Wicke heard them, and then told the employee to approach the other employees and the lifesavers. Once the yacht reached the group, Wicke got down to the platform on the stern of the yacht.

"What's the problem here, Kiana?" asked Wicke.

"These Australian surf lifesavers are harassing us," said Hilbert.

"Is that so?" said Lusamine coolly. "Well as a matter of fact, I know just the way to get rid of them. Come here, boys."

Lusamine grabbed a bucket of rotten, slimy Wishiwashi heads and poured it all over Ziggy, Banjo, and Lachlan.

"YOU BITCH!" yelled Ziggy.

"Now piss off," said Lusamine.

The surf lifesavers paddled away as quickly as they could.

Hilbert looked at Wicke.

"Thanks," said Hilbert.

"No problem," said Lusamine, turning away.

"Are you enjoying your quad bike ride?" asked Wicke.

"We sure are," said Hilbert. "We're just taking a little break."

"Of course!" said Wicke. "Carry on, then. The president's enjoying her nice, relaxing ride in the sunshine - right?"

Lusamine sulked.

"Whatever," she said.

As Lusamine sat down in a chair, she waved coolly to the group.

"We've got to get going," said Wicke. "Lusamine doesn't like it when the sun's very bright, and she likes to be pale." Wicke told the driver to go further out. "See you tonight, guys!" She waved happily at everyone. Lusamine just sulked.

"Bye, Wicke!" said Hilbert and his co-workers.

The yacht pulled away. Hilbert and his friends got over to land.

"Hey, Hilbert," said Emil.

"What is it?" asked Hilbert.

"I wonder what happened to Sebastian," said Emil.

"I'm not sure," said Ricardo.

"Last time I checked, he was going to Kawao Town," said Allison.

"I'm a bit worried," said Kiana. "We don't want to leave him behind."

"Let's go find him," said Hilbert.

Hilbert and his friends dried off, put their clothes back on, and got on their quad bikes. They drove all the way back to where they came from. They decided to wait for Sebastian there. But once it started getting late, the group was worried. They decided to search the north coast for him.

Sebastian was sitting at the beach next to his quad bike, looking out at the sunset and musing upon his attitude.

"Gee...I wish I wasn't so rude and sarcastic," he said. "I've been here for over a month and I keep acting like a jerk. Why do I always have to act like a jerk to everyone? Why can't I be nice? I can never do anything right. Dad is laughing all the way to the bank while I just lumber here hopelessly."

Sebastian's co-workers found him.

"Sebastian!" said Hilbert. "We need to get back and return our quad bikes."

"Huh?" said Sebastian. "Oh, for Pete's sake, I must have fallen asleep!"

"You missed a lot," said Emil. "We went to Kala'e Bay met these mean Australian lifesavers."

"Luckily, Lusamine got them away from us," said Ricardo.

"Pfft," said Sebastian, "those tourists don't know when to quit."

"They remind me of you," said Emil. Sebastian shot an angry look at Emil. "...except they aren't as classy as you."

"Thanks..." said Sebastian coolly.

The group went back to return their quad bikes, and then they went back to Aether Paradise.

That night, Hilbert lay down on his bed looking towards the window at the night sky.

"It's good that I have plenty of nice, caring people here," he said to himself. "Even Sebastian seems okay. He may be a bit rough around the edges, but maybe he's not as bad as he seems. I wonder how Hilda is doing..."

And next chapter we'll see what Hilda's up to.


	9. Back to Work!

_**A/N:** Sorry for the delay! Sometimes I've got other commitments._

* * *

 **CHAPTER 9: BACK TO WORK!**

By now, Hilda and Osman had finished the investigation. Both of them had to do lots of patrolling - Osman even got his Crabominable to move aside some rocks to see if Shiny Pokemon had been hiding there. Osman had found a lot of Shiny Pokemon, of course, and Hilda found a few too.

Anabel met Hilda and Osman at the entrance of Wela Volcano Park and congratulated the two.

"Thank you for your effort," said Anabel.

"It was no trouble at all," said Hilda. "I'm just doing what comes naturally. It was nice to complete my first mission, even if it wasn't discussed in the previous chapter."

"What is that?" asked Osman.

"Nothing," said Hilda.

The three of them laughed.

"It's been a pleasure working with you, Hilda," said Osman. "I hope we can do it again sometime."

Anabel gave Hilda and Osman a decent sum of money.

"I love getting paid," said Hilda, "but not as much as helping Pokemon."

Hilda looked out the window.

"I wonder how Hilbert is doing," she said. "He must be enjoying his new job just as much as I am."

Meanwhile, back at Aether Paradise, Hilbert was working. He is dressed in his Aether Foundation Uniform. He was taking down notes on conservation. He had been given an assignment to take notes on Corsola and Mareanie.

Hilbert looked at Kiana, who was also taking notes.

"It's good that Corsola have a safe place to thrive here at Aether Paradise," said Hilbert. "But I'm kinda concerned about Mareanie too. They need to eat Corsola to survive and prosper. I know culling their population will do good for the Corsola population, but parasites are just as much part of an ecosystem as anything else."

"I think that's useful information to keep in mind," said Kiana.

"That is right," said Hilbert. "Pokemon do overpopulate. Take Lapras for example. There used to be very few of them, but now there's a lot of them. In Unova they've been expanding their range in recent years. Although that may be a good thing as well, since Lapras are very useful for transporting people. But getting back to the Mareanie problem...I think giving some Mareanie birth control would be better than killing them."

"I caught a Mareanie a few weeks before Hilbert arrived," said Ricardo. "I put it on a controlled diet so it won't attack Corsola. I've heard some Trainers even had their Mareanie spayed or neutered, but personally I think that's a little extreme."

Allison and Emil walked over.

"Yesterday's excursion was fun," said Allison, "but it's nice to get back to work too."

"How's the assignment on Mimikyu going, Emil?" asked Hilbert.

"It's going quite well," said Emil. "I'm almost finished. I'm glad they have a library here, so I don't have to go all the way to Ula'ula Island to observe wild Mimikyu."

"I'd hesitate around those things," said Kiana. "They're really creepy."

"I think they're cute," said Hilbert.

"They're not so cute when you look under them," said Allison. "Supposedly, if you look under their rag, you'll die."

Hilbert scratched his beard (he has been growing one as of late) and thought about it.

"I guess I'll keep my distance from one of those guys!" he said.

Hilbert went over to Snowdrop's little home. He saw that Rosella was absent - Hilbert had been told that she was busy making Pollen Puffs.

Snowdrop flew up to Hilbert.

"Meep meep!" he said.

"Hello, Snowdrop," said Hilbert.

"Meep meep!" said Snowdrop.

"Are you hungry?" asked Hilbert.

"Meep meep!" said Snowdrop. "Meep meep!"

"I guess you are," said Hilbert.

Hilbert took a few Poke Beans out of one of the pockets on his jumpsuit.

"Here you go, little guy," said Hilbert.

Snowdrop gobbled up the Poke Beans with his proboscis.

"Meep meep!" said Snowdrop.

"No problem," said Hilbert. "Your mom should be back any minute."

After a few minutes, Rosella came back with some Pollen Puffs. She saw that Snowdrop was full, so she decided to save the Pollen Puffs for later.

"Bzzz bzzz," said Rosella. She gave Hilbert a Pollen Puff.

"Thanks," said Hilbert.

"Bzzz bzzz!" said Rosella.

Hilbert walked away. He went back to his assignment. When he finished it, he gave the notes to Kiana, who would give them to Wicke.

"Now to go check on Hilda," said Hilbert.

Hilbert made his way back to his room and decided to call Hilda. Hilda picked up her cellphone.

"Hello?" said Hilda.

"Hello!" said Hilbert. "How did your first mission go?"

"It went pretty good," said Hilda. "I completed it and was paid for my hard work. How's things at Aether Paradise?"

"I'm working," said Hilbert. "Right now, I'm on a thirty-minute break, so I decided to talk to you. I'm going to get back to work after I'm done calling you."

"Okay," said Hilda. "How are your co-workers?"

"Most of them are pretty nice," said Hilbert. "I'm still having trouble getting along with Sebastian, but I haven't seen him today. Everyone else is doing good. I just finished working on an assignment related to Corsola and Mareanie."

"I'm glad things are going well," said Hilda.

"I've got to get back to work now," said Hilbert. "See you soon!"

"Bye, Hilbert!" said Hilda. The two of them hung up. Afterwards, Hilbert went back to work.


	10. Limburger Helper

**CHAPTER 10: LIMBURGER HELPER**

That evening, Hilbert was done with his shift, so he went to the cafeteria to eat with his fellow workers.

Hilbert served himself some chicken lo mein, teriyaki chicken, vegetable dumplings, and sushi. He took a bottle of lychee soda to wash it all down. He then went to sit down at his table.

"That looks so good," said Emil, reaching his fork out to take a piece of chicken.

Hilbert nudged Emil's fork away with his own fork.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" said Hilbert. "Keep to your own plate."

"Sorry," said Emil.

"That's okay," said Hilbert. "Your plate looks good too." Hilbert eyed Emil's plate, which also had chicken lo mein, plus a slice of pizza, sesame chicken, and dinner rolls.

"Sorry, Hilbert," said Emil. "This food is all mine!" Emil took a bite of lo mein.

Allison looked at Hilbert and Emil and shook her head.

"Dinner's always a party for you two," she said.

"I can't help it," said Emil. "I enjoy Hilbert's company. Just like how Kiana enjoys her fish tacos." Kiana's plate was full of fish tacos made from the freshest Magikarp.

Everyone at the table laughed.

"Never really cared for fish tacos," said Ricardo. "But they do make a nice Limburger." Ricardo held out a chunk of Limburger cheese. Everyone else held their noses.

"Aaaugh!" said Kiana. "That cheese smells horrible!"

Ricardo took a bite of Limburger.

"The cheese stand just opened today," said Ricardo. "I've always wanted to try Limburger."

"I think I'd rather try a cheese that doesn't smell like feet," said Hilbert. "Cheese-making is part of my family's history. When my ancestors first moved to this country from Germany, they worked in the cheese-making business." Hilbert was still holding his nose.

"Just make sure to brush your teeth when you get back to your room," said Allison.

Sebastian was walking by. He couldn't help but notice the foul-smelling Limburger.

"Aaaugh!" he said. "Who's eating that disgusting cheese?"

"He is!" said Emil, pointing to Ricardo.

"You ought to get rid of that Limburger," said Sebastian. "I can smell if from the table I'm at!"

"It's a free country," said Ricardo.

"And it's also free for me to not partake in eating that glop," said Sebastian.

"You don't like lo mein?" asked Hilbert.

"It's not healthy," said Sebastian.

"Oh, I forgot," said Hilbert, noticing that Sebastian's plate had a salad on it. "You're a vegetarian."

"Indeed I am," said Sebastian. "Sounds like you guys have a problem with it."

"No, of course not!" said Hilbert.

"I'm out of here," said Sebastian. "I'm getting nauseous around that noxious cheese."

Sebastian started to walk away.

By now, Ricardo had finished his piece of Limburger cheese.

"Would you like me to go get some cheese for you?" he asked.

"Of course!" said Hilbert. "Just one thing...no more of that Limburger."

"I promise that's the last Limburger I'm having for quite some time," said Ricardo.

Ricardo decided to get some cheese from the cheese stand. Hilbert tried all different kinds of cheeses. He especially liked the mozzarella cheese.

"Mozzarella is one of my favorites," said Hilbert. "I could get fat eating all this cheese."

Everyone laughed.

That night, Hilbert went back to his room. He looked out the window at the sea. Things were going peachy for a while, until...

"I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOUR FUCKING FACE AGAIN, SEBASTIAN HARGREAVES!"

"Oh, dear," said Hilbert. "Emil sounds pretty pissed off."

Since Hilbert was dressed in only a black T-shirt and a pair of blue boxers, he put on the Aether Employee bathrobe that hung in the bathroom and went outside his room.

Hilbert saw Ricardo, Emil, and Sebastian standing in the hallway. The normally placid and happy-go-lucky Emil had his hands in fists and a fierce look on his face.

"Okay," said Hilbert, "what is going on here?"

"I can't stand being around Sebastian anymore," said Emil.

"Sebastian," said Hilbert, "what did you say to upset Emil?"

"Nothing," said Sebastian. "All I said was that Poland was a terrible place."

"Is that true, Sebastian?" said Hilbert.

"Yes," said Sebastian. "but why would I want to revisit a filthy, corrupt..."

"I think I can handle this..." said Hilbert. "Emil...Sebastian's experience in Poland was different from your own. People can have different experiences in the same place. For example, I love going to Anville Town, but some of my friends think it's boring. Keep that in mind."

Emil took a deep breath and sighed.

"You're right, Hilbert," he said. "There's no sense in being obstinate."

"I agree," said Ricardo.

"Please don't talk, Ricardo," said Sebastian. "Your breath still smells of Limburger."

"Sorry," said Ricardo,

"And as for you, Sebastian," said Hilbert, "I think that you should start being a little more respectful of other people. You've been here longer than me and it seems like you're making more enemies than friends. Me, Emil, and Ricardo don't want to be your enemies."

"You're getting really preachy, Hilbert..." said Sebastian.

"I know I am," said Hilbert, "but you'll catch more Cutiefly with honey than with vinegar. Being nice isn't that hard."

"You're damn right, Hilbert," said Sebastian, "but nobody understands what I've been through."

"What have you been through?" asked Hilbert.

"That's not important right now," said Sebastian. "If you'll excuse me, I'm going back to my room."

Sebastian went back to his room and closed the door.

"I still don't understand Sebastian," said Ricardo.

"It seems that it's hard for him to open up to others," said Hilbert. "We should give him a chance."

"I'm hesitant to do that," said Emil. "He's always sniping at us."

"I understand, Emil," said Hilbert. "But I think we should. I'm sure Lusamine gives people plenty of chances."

* * *

Meanwhile, in Lusamine's mansion, Lusamine was arguing with her daughter Lillie.

"But Mom!" said Lillie. "Cosmog is suffering. You have to stop treating it like that!"

"Be quiet, Lillie!" said Lusamine. "I need Cosmog for my research."

"You don't understand, Mom," said Lillie. "If you keep exploiting Cosmog for its power, it will die."

"Why should I stop my research for the sake of one Pokemon?" said Lusamine.

"Research shouldn't involve cruelty," said Lillie.

Lusamine glared at Lillie.

"You make me sick!" she said. "There's no way you're getting your hands on my Cosmog. What are you going to do about it?"

"I don't know..." said Lillie, "but I can't bear to see Cosmog suffer. You won't kill Cosmog. You just won't!"

"Don't you raise your voice at me, missy!" said Lusamine. "Now go to bed!"

"Fine..." said Lillie. She went upstairs to her room.


	11. Surfin' Unova

**CHAPTER 11: SURFIN' UNOVA**

A few days later, Hilbert had the day off, so he and his decided to go surfing at Kahanamoku Beach, located on the south shore of Akala Island.

Hilbert stood on the beachfront. He was wearing a pair of mint green board shorts with pink flowers. In his hand was a pink surfboard that he rented. He looked out to sea.

"These waves are wicked sick!" said Hilbert, doing a really bad Californian accent.

"Right on!" said Ricardo.

"Let's paddle out," said Hilbert.

Hilbert lay his surfboard in the water. Ricardo, Emil, Kiana, and Allison followed suit.

"Wow..." said Hilbert, looking at the waves as he paddled out. "those waves are BIG!"

"I'm holding back on this one," said Emil. "It's too intense for someone who's surfing for the first time."

"I'll catch this one," said Kiana. "I've ridden 30-footers lots of times."

Kiana paddled out towards the wave and stood up as soon as she caught the wave.

"Lucky for her, she's got a wetsuit on," said Emil. "I'm afraid my shorts will fall off during this wave."

"Got anything under them?" asked Ricardo.

"I do," said Emil. "I made sure to wear a tighter swimsuit underneath." Hilbert noticed that Emil's blue speedo was visible underneath his striped board shorts.

"Me too," said Hilbert.

"Me three," said Ricardo.

Kiana paddled back to the group.

"That was awesome!" she said.

"I'll catch the next one," said Hilbert.

"Me too," said Ricardo.

Hilbert and Ricardo paddled out towards the next wave - a 15-footer. Hilbert caught the nose of the wave. He stood up and spread his arms out, running his hand through the rippling water.

"You're so cool, Hilbert," said Emil.

Hilbert paddled back.

"Thanks," said Hilbert. "There's decent-sized waves off the coast of Unova - I practice with those waves."

"Where's the best surf spot in Unova?" Emil asked Hilbert.

"The best surf spot is in Undella Bay," said Hilbert, "located off the coast of Undella Town. Just be careful, though, since there's a bunch of ruins underneath the waves. You wouldn't want to fall in too deep when you wipe out, lest you get cut on a rock."

"I've seen those," said Ricardo. "I scuba dive."

"I've done scuba diving as well," said Hilbert. "I'd love to do it around here. It would be cool to see Bruxish in their natural habitat."

"There's another big one coming up," said Emil.

"I am there," said Hilbert. He paddled out towards the wave. Ricardo, Kiana, and Allison followed suit. Emil felt left out, so he followed them.

Hilbert looked behind him.

"This one might be a little too intense for you," he said.

"Intense?" said Emil. "I think I can handle it."

"Ready for action?" asked Kiana.

"YES!" said everyone else.

The five of them stood up and rode the huge wave. Things didn't go well for Emil, though - he tried to maneuver the right way, but he ended up wiping out.

Hilbert, Ricardo, Kiana, and Allison paddled back to the calmer water.

"Where's Emil?" asked Allison.

Emil's surfboard floated to the rest of them. Then Emil surfaced and spit out some water.

"The water here tastes nasty," said Emil.

"It's salt water," said Kiana. "Of course it tastes nasty."

Hilbert and Kiana helped Emil get back up on his surfboard.

Kiana looked at the necklace that Ricardo was wearing.

"Is that a real Sharpedo tooth?" she asked.

"It sure is," said Ricardo. "I made it myself."

Hilbert looked at the wave that was rising up.

"I'll catch this one," he said.

Hilbert paddled out towards the wave and caught the tail. He skimmed his hand through the water.

"Cowabunga!" yelled Hilbert.

Emil giggled.

"I can tell who's having the most fun out here," said Emil.

"He's having the time of his life," said Ricardo.

After an hour had passed, the five of them went ashore. By then, Hilbert had gotten really tired, and he fell face-first onto the sand.

"I think someone has ridden one too many waves," said Ricardo.

"Don't worry about a thing, Hilbert," said Kiana. "We'll help you up."

Ricardo and Kiana helped Hilbert up.

"You're right, guys," said Hilbert. "I'm all tuckered out."

"Wicke should be here soon," said Allison. "She said she was going to bring a ferry to take us back to Aether Paradise."

"That would be great," said Hilbert. "I've ridden enough waves for one day."

"At least you were having fun," said Emil. "Ugh...this salt water leaves such a bad aftertaste. I think I've got a stomachache."

"When we get back to Aether Paradise, you can rest," Kiana told Emil.

"I think I need rest," said Emil.

"I think I need rest too," said Hilbert. "But first we'll need to wash off all this sand."

Everyone laughed.


	12. Accent Wars

_**A/N:** As for the blurb at the end of the chapter...once I get to chapter 15, we'll get to see Lillie's escape._

* * *

 **CHAPTER 12: ACCENT WARS**

The next morning, Hilbert went about his usual work, tending the Pokemon conservatory area and feeding Snowdrop.

"One more Poke Bean?" Hilbert asked Snowdrop.

"Meep meep!" said Snowdrop.

Hilbert fed the Cutiefly another Poke Bean.

Hilbert noticed a guy feeding a Vullaby. He hadn't seen this guy before - he wondered if he was a new recruit.

"Peep peep peep!" said the Vullaby.

"How's it going?" Hilbert asked the young man.

The young man turned around.

"I'm doing fine there, lad," he said. He spoke in a Cockney accent.

"You new here?" asked Hilbert.

"I've been here for nearly three weeks," said the young man. "I switched units today. I'm Thomas Bennett, but you can call me Tom."

"I'm Hilbert Klump," said Hilbert. "You're English, I'm guessing?"

"Correct," said Tom.

Tom took off his cap and ran his hand through his blond hair.

"I never cared for these uniforms," he said. "They get really sweaty. Not to mention it's hard using the loo with this thing on."

"I know how you feel," said Hilbert. "You basically have to take the whole thing off."

"I usually wear just tank tops and underwear under these because it's too hot around here to dress in layers," said Tom. "I didn't realize that Alola was so hot. My skin is very pale, so it doesn't help. Where I live, it hardly ever gets this hot." Hilbert saw that Tom's face was kind of red from the heat.

Sebastian walked by.

"Oh, damn," he said. "Tom's in our unit now."

"What's wrong with that?" asked Tom.

"What's wrong?" said Sebastian. He turned to Hilbert. "I can't stand this chav. His accent is too stereotypical. Spend too much time around him, and you'd think all Brits talked in Cockneys."

Tom sighed.

"People back home have teased me about it," he told Hilbert. "Sebastian here is the one who said the most about it."

"That's not very nice," said Hilbert. "Sebastian, why do you have to be so mean?"

"It's just the way I am," said Sebastian. He walked off in a huff.

Snowdrop flew over to Hilbert.

"Meep meep," he said.

"Hello there," said Tom. "I know this Cutiefly likes me. What's his name?"

"Snowdrop," said Hilbert.

"Right," said Tom. "Anyway...I wanted to earn extra money for my family, which is why I'm here. My family is working-class. Sebastian often rips on me for it."

"Well," said Hilbert, "it's best to not let what other people say bother you. Just try to keep a positive face."

"You're right, Hilbert," said Tom. "Let's get back to work."

Hilbert and Tom got back to work.

"Want to spend some time with me after work?" asked Hilbert.

"Sure," said Tom.

Once work was done, Hilbert and Tom decided to hang out. Since work was up, they changed back into their normal clothes. Hilbert introduced Tom to his friends.

"I've seen Tom before," said Ricardo. "He's pretty nice."

"Hello, Tom," said Emil. "Do you like cookies?"

"Yes, I do," said Tom.

Everyone laughed.

"I'm looking forward to working with you," said Tom.

Wicke walked over to the group.

"I have another assignment for you guys," she said. "I'm sure you're going to really enjoy this one!"

"What is it?" asked Allison.

"You're going to be going scuba diving off the coast of Ula'ula Island," said Wicke. "We're going to be studying Bruxish in their natural habitats."

"Cool!" said Hilbert.

"Awesome!" said Ricardo.

"I have underwater camera housing," said Tom.

"That's great!" said Wicke. "We'll be needing it."

"When are we going?" asked Hilbert.

"Tomorrow," said Wicke. "Tonight, I'm going to need to do some measurements so you get the right size wetsuits."

"Okay," said Hilbert.

"This is going to be so much fun!" said Kiana. "I'm looking forward to it."

That night, Hilbert and his friends went to a special room where the wetsuits were stored. Wicke took measurements for Hilbert and his friends.

Emil giggled while he was getting measurements.

"That tickles!" he said.

* * *

After Wicke was done with measurements, she went back to her private room. When it was four in the morning she got a visitor. It was Lillie.

"Wicke!" she said. "There's something I need to talk to you about."

Lillie whispered something into Wicke's ear. The whispering went on for several minutes. Wicke was shocked at first, but then Lillie asked her to keep the whole thing a secret.

"Thanks for keeping it a secret," she said. "I'm going to be gone in three days. On the night of my escape, I'll visit you one last time. And whatever you do, don't tell anyone where I am!"

"I promise, Lillie," she said.


	13. We'll Go Surfing Under the Sea

**CHAPTER 13: WE'LL GO SURFING UNDER THE SEA**

The next day was the scuba diving excursion. Hilbert and his co-workers were ship. Hilbert, Emil, Ricardo, Tom, Kiana, and Allison were singing Pingo's song from the crappy movie Tentacolino.

 _Living in Atlantis_

 _Never ever gets you down_

 _We'll go surfing under the sea_

 _Living in Atlantis_

 _Makes your head go spinning round_

 _You'll be happy_

 _Just wait and see_

 _Under the stormy sea_

 _We've got a lot for thee_

 _The waves are far a falling_

 _Living in Atlantis_

 _Never ever gets you down_

 _We'll go surfing under the sea_

"That shitty song never fails to amuse me," said Hilbert.

"Do you think we'll see a lot of fishy Pokemon?" asked Emil.

Hilbert giggled.

"We sure will, Emil," said Hilbert.

"We've all got our wetsuits on," said Kiana. "I'm glad I could find one in my size. For someone as fat as me, it's kinda hard."

"I've done research on water temperatures," said Tom. "It's about 82 degrees in there. I'm glad the wetsuits here have short sleeves."

"I can't wait to see what's underwater," said Ricardo.

"We're going to be going in momentarily," said Allison.

Wicke gave everyone their snorkels and helped deploy everyone into the water. When Hilbert submerged, he looked around. He couldn't believe how clear the water was. He saw schools of Bruxish swimming around, as well as Lapras swimming on the surface. But what really struck him was the colorful coral reef.

"Magnificent!" said Hilbert. "It's so beautiful!"

Tom took some pictures with his camera that was protected by underwater housing.

"Let's go closer to the coral reefs to get a closer look," said Allison.

"Just make sure not to touch the coral," said Kiana. "Coral is extremely fragile."

The group swam closer to the reefs.

"Wow!" said Hilbert. "I've never been this close to coral." Hilbert saw some Bruxish aggressing at a small group of sprat. "It appears that Bruxish like to intimidate smaller fish."

The Bruxish looked at Hilbert and growled.

"Don't worry," said Hilbert. "I mean no harm."

The Bruxish stopped growling.

"You seem to have a close connection with Pokemon," said Emil. "I wish I were that close..."

"I've been around a lot," said Hilbert. "I went on a Pokemon journey when I was fourteen. Me and my cousin Hilda helped thwart Ghetsis and Team Plasma."

Emil was stunned.

"You're THE Hilbert?" he asked. "I can't believe it! I've been wanting to meet you for so long!"

"I thought you knew that already," Ricardo told Emil.

"I'm kinda surprised people wouldn't recognize me," said Hilbert. "There aren't many people named Hilbert these days. I stick out like a sore thumb."

"It's such an honor to work with you, Hilbert!" said Emil.

Hilbert chuckled.

"I don't need any flattery," he said. "But thanks!"

A Bruxish swam close to Ricardo.

"I wonder what this guy wants," he said.

The Bruxish bit Ricardo on the leg.

"OWWWWW!" he said.

"Oh dear!" said Kiana. "Is there any blood?"

"Luckily no," said Ricardo.

Tom stopped taking pictures.

"I think I have more than enough," he said. "Now to switch to video mode..." Tom started to film the Bruxish. "Pokemon are such amazing creatures. You learn new things about them everyday. There's so much about them we don't know - I'd love to learn all that I can!"

"Indeed," said Hilbert.

"There's also so much to learn from the vast oceans of the earth," said Tom.

"The oceans are said to be Earth's final frontier," said Hilbert. "So much of the ocean floor remains unexplored. God knows how many unknown creatures live in its depths."

"But looking right here is fine for me," said Emil. "I don't want to go into the deep ocean."

"You can't go in the deep ocean by scuba diving," said Allison. "The pressure would kill you."

Emil shivered.

"Don't worry," said Hilbert. "We're nowhere near the continental slope. Although they say that Mount Lanakila would be the tallest mountain in the world if you took it out of the ocean - even higher than Mount Everest."

"Cool!" said Emil.

"Wow," said Ricardo. "We are spending so much time talking, we're not getting anything done."

"It's hard to write notes down in the water," said Hilbert.

"Don't worry about a thing, Hilbert," said Kiana. "I have the memory of an Alakazam. I can get all the notes for you."

Kiana took out her camera and started to film the Bruxish. Hilbert followed suit.

"You learn new things every day," said Hilbert, "and I've learned how to appreciate undersea life viewed from undersea."


	14. Lillie's Escape

**CHAPTER 14: LILLIE'S ESCAPE**

That night, everyone finished their research notes. They spent the next three days working on notes.

At the end of the two days, Lillie finally followed through her plans. She had sneaked out of her room that night, while Lusamine was asleep. She quickly left the mansion at the far end of the Aether Paradise. She sneaked into the main building. First, she went toward's Wicke's chamber and spoke to her.

"Wicke," said Lillie, "I am going to be taking Nebby away. I don't know how long I'll be gone. We might not see each other for a long, long time. Nebby's safety depends on me and I'll have to protect him at all times."

"I understand," said Wicke. "I'll try my best to keep things around here safe."

"I know Mother is going to be angry," said Lillie, "but Nebby's life is more important! I'm requesting the keycard to the lowest laboratory."

Wicke agreed to this. She punched in the code of her secret compartment and opened it. She took out a keycard and handed it to Lillie.

"I guess this is goodbye," said Lillie. "I will miss you terribly."

"I will miss you too," said Wicke, hugging Lillie. "We'll see each other again someday, I promise."

Lillie bade farewell to Wicke and then went inside the main building. She took the elevator to the laboratories. She saw security patrolling the place, and took care to avoid them. Her white clothes and pale coloring blended her in with the surroundings.

Lillie descended the various ramps and soon found herself at the lowest laboratory. She used the keycard to access it. She went inside the dark laboratory. This room had all sorts of Pokemon, all of whom looked scared. Lillie wanted to free them all, but she couldn't.

At last, Lillie found Nebby sleeping in a test tube. Lillie used the keycard to open the test tube. She quickly grabbed Nebby.

"No time to panic, Nebby!" said Lillie. "I'm saving you from a grisly fate."

Lillie put Nebby in her bag and zipped it shut. She then exited the lowest laboratory and made her way back to the elevator. Unfortunately, the alarm had gone off, and security was alerted to the intruder. Lillie took no notice of them at first.

When Lillie went up to the conservation area, she heard the sirens. Soon, a trio of male employees appeared. These employees were among the security.

"Hey, you!" said one of them. "Come back here with that Pokemon!"

Two of the employees began to chase Lillie. She ran across the walkway, turning several corners and ducking the two men. When she got to the end, she tried to escape, but then the third employee appeared.

"You won't get away with this!" he said.

"Uh-oh," said Lillie.

Lillie saw that she was cornered. The employees smiled cruelly and walked closer to her. Then, Lillie saw that her bag was glowing. Nebby engulfed her in a ray of blue-violet light. The employees looked in horror and disgust as the light consumed Lillie. Nebby had teleported Lillie away from the prison and to a place where she could be safe.

Soon after that, Lillie and Nebby ended up on a beach. She was conscious, so she looked around. It was the wee hours of the morning.

"Phew," she said. "I'm safe. And so are you, Nebby."

Nebby made happy sounds.

Not long after, a woman appeared. She had tan skin and white hair. This was Professor Burnet. She and Professor Kukui had returned from their honeymoon two weeks ago.

"Hello there, young lady," said Professor Burnet. "What brings you here?"

"Please, ma'am," said Lillie. "I'm fleeing for my life. I'll tell you everything I can later. Just get me and Nebby to safety."

"Nebby?" said Professor Burnet.

Lillie showed Nebby to Professor Burnet for a few seconds, and then put him back.

"I'll be glad to help you," said Professor Burnet. "I'm Professor Stephanie Burnet. I'll take you back to my office for the day."

Lillie went with Professor Burnet. She felt safe with her, since she seemed so much nicer than Lusamine. When Lillie arrived at Professor Burnet's office, she told her everything.

"Allow me to introduce myself," said Lillie. "I am Lillie Mohn-Perlmutter. My mother Lusamine runs the Aether Foundation. A while ago, I discovered Nebby. I found out that he was one of my mother's test experiments. She was using him to try and open the Ultra Wormhole. The experiments had terrible effects on his health, and soon I discovered that he was dangerously close to death. A few days from now, Mother's last experiment on him would probably have killed him. So tonight I decided to rescue him. Wicke helped me access the laboratory where Nebby was being held. I went down and took him and fled. Security chased me, but Nebby teleported me to safety. And that's how I ended up here."

"I see," said Professor Burnet.

"Please, Professor Burnet," said Lillie. "I need a place to stay for the time being. It's not safe for me to go back home."

"Well, Lillie," said Professor Burnet, "I'll contact my husband, Professor Kukui, and he'll give you a place to stay."

Professor Burnet called her husband and told him about the whole ordeal. Professor Kukui was glad to take in Lillie. After the phone call, Professor Burnet told Lillie the good news.

"Looks like you've got a new home," said Professor Burnet. "My husband will keep you safe."

"Thanks, Professor Burnet!" said Lillie, hugging Professor Burnet. "I promise I'll help him with his research and work very hard."

And from here on, Lillie would stay with Professor Kukui and serve as his assistant. And in the next chapter, we'll get back to the Aether Paradise.


	15. My First Cavity Search

**CHAPTER 15: MY FIRST CAVITY SEARCH**

While this was going on, Hilbert and most of his fellow Aether Foundation employees were asleep. Hilbert was woken up by the intercom. It was Lusamine. Since Lusamine rarely talked over the intercom, this appeared to be important. Hilbert was half-asleep, but he listened to it.

 _Attention, Aether Foundation employees! The Aether Foundation is currently going through a crisis within our laboratories. We will be doing baggage checks on visitors and employees. For scientists and security, please report to the laboratories. For everyone else, you may continue working how you normally do. This is Lusamine, signing off!_

"This doesn't sound good," said Hilbert.

Hilbert got up and had breakfast, and then put on his uniform and went to the conservation area. He saw Ricardo, Emil, Kiana, and Allison standing around, talking to each other.

"What's going on?" asked Hilbert.

"Did you hear?" said Kiana. "A Pokemon has been stolen from Aether Paradise!"

"Ooh," said Hilbert. "What kind of Pokemon?"

"We don't know exactly," said Ricardo, "but we do know it was one Lusamine was personally caring for."

"I'm just glad you're all safe!" said Hilbert.

"Me too," said Emil. "Lusamine was pretty angry when she found out about it. Wicke told me her face was all red."

"Yeesh," said Hilbert. "What about the baggage checks?"

"We'll be going through baggage checks later," said Allison.

"There's no Pokemon in my bags," said Hilbert. "I checked before I left."

"Unfortunately, none of us are safe from the suspicion," said Ricardo.

Hilbert sighed.

"I'll go get my bags checked now," said Hilbert.

Hilbert went back to his room to get his bags, and then went to security to check them out.

"I'm here to get my bags checked," said Hilbert.

After waiting for a dozen and a half people to get their bags checked, Hilbert went through a long, boring baggage check. It felt somewhat humiliating, but Hilbert didn't dare to complain. Luckily, he was cleared, and he went back to work When Hilbert went back to his room, he saw his friends going to get their bags checked.

By nightfall, everyone had gone through the baggage checks. As it turned out, no one had the missing Pokemon, and no one was in possession of anything suspicious. Lusamine knew it was Lillie who had taken Nebby, but she still felt the need to clear her employees in case anyone had helped Lillie.

That night, Hilbert looked out to the sky. He felt relieved that he had been cleared. He would never try to double-cross Lusamine.

Hilbert looked in the mirror.

"I think I need a shave," said Hilbert. "If my beard gets longer, I'll look like one of those damn neckbeards."

Hilbert took the electric razor in his bathroom and started to shave. He spent the next hour getting rid of every hair. He applied wax to his beard so he could get all the hairs out. It was painful getting out all those hairs, and Hilbert didn't like the pain.

Not long after Hilbert finished, he heard a knock on the door. Hilbert walked over to the door and opened it. It was Ricardo. By now, Hilbert was fine with other male employees seeing him in his boxers.

"Ricardo!" said Hilbert. "Notice anything different about me?"

"Whoa, Hilbert!" said Ricardo. "Your beard's gone!"

"I shaved it," said Hilbert, "and waxed it. It was starting to get a little itchy."

"I bet all the girls will dig that clean-shaven face," said Ricardo.

Hilbert giggled.

"Sorry, Ricardo," he said, "but I'm already taken. I told you about my girlfriend Bianca."

"I know," said Ricardo. "I have a girlfriend too. Her name's Mayra. Emil's girlfriend is named Anna."

"Where is your girlfriend?" asked Hilbert.

"She's studying in Kalos," said Ricardo.

"Cool," said Hilbert. He sighed. "Today was rather uncomfortable."

"I wouldn't worry about it," said Ricardo. "Things happen around here. And between you and me...I'm kinda suspicious of that Lusamine."

"You are?" asked Hilbert.

"She can act really strange at times," said Ricardo, "especially around rare Pokemon. The Pokemon that went missing is an extremely rare Pokemon. According to Wicke, it's called Cosmog."

"Cosmog?" said Hilbert. "Never heard of it."

"Like I said," said Ricardo, "Cosmog is extremely rare. I forget what it looks like. It's small enough to fit inside a bag."

"I'd like to learn more about it," said Hilbert.

"I wish we could," said Ricardo, "but the lower laboratories are off-limits to low-ranking workers like us. There's even supposedly a room that only Lusamine herself is allowed to go in. Just note that talking about said room is taboo in Aether Paradise."

"Okay," said Hilbert. "I won't speak of that supposed room."

"I must go back to my room," said Ricardo. "It's past my usual bedtime. See you tomorrow!"

"See you tomorrow!" said Hilbert.

Hilbert closed the door, and Ricardo went back to his room.


	16. Kingschap: The Golden Pentagram

_**WARNING: This chapter contains some material that might offend people. Viewer discretion is advised.**_

 _ **A/N:** I got the idea for this chapter after seeing Kingsman: The Golden Circle in theaters two weeks ago and not enjoying it. My reaction to it wasn't too different from Hilbert's reaction to the parody._

* * *

 **CHAPTER 16: KINGSCHAP: THE GOLDEN PENTAGRAM**

A few days later, there was another announcement from Lusamine.

 _Attention, Aether Foundation employees! The results of the searches are in. All employees have been cleared. You may now go about your usual jobs._

"Phew," said Hilbert. "Thank God for that. Now I hope things are all over."

Hilbert got dressed and went to work. He had already showed off his new beardless look to everyone the other day, and got plenty of compliments. Today, he decided to talk about the announcement.

"So," said Hilbert, "is it over? Has the missing Pokemon been found?"

"Unfortunately, no," said Ricardo. "Lusamine tried calling the authorities, and they failed to locate it."

Tom walked over.

"Lusamine said that she will handle the case privately," he said. "Unfortunately, I found out more bad news. Lusamine's daughter is missing."

"Lillie?" asked Allison.

"I found out when I visited the house yesterday," said Tom. "The butler told me Lillie disappeared too."

"Do you think Lillie stole the Pokemon?" asked Emil.

"No, of course not," said Tom. "Lillie's a good girl. She's not a thief. Still, I tried mentioning her to Lusamine, and Lusamine told me to get out or else she'd call security."

"That doesn't sound like Lusamine," said Hilbert.

"It most certainly does," said Kiana. "Lusamine is normally warm and friendly, but she can be rather cold and spiteful at times. Still, I wouldn't worry about it too much. A lot of bosses are like that. Unlike you guys, I'm here permanently, so I get to know her a bit better."

"We do have some good news," said Ricardo. "Wicke allowed the people in our unit to have a night to ourselves for getting so much work done these past few weeks. We're going to. We're going to be watching a movie."

"Cool!" said Hilbert. "What movie?"

"Well..." said Allison, "we've got a number of candidates. We're going to draw straws later."

That evening, in the rec hall, Hilbert and his group decided to draw straws. As it turned out, Sebastian got the short straw, so he was going to pick the movie.

"I think you're going to all love the movie I picked out," he said, "especially you, Hilbert."

"Oh...thanks..." said Hilbert.

"The movie I chose is _Kingschap: The Golden Pentagram_ ," said Sebastian.

Everyone was enthusiastic about Sebastian's choice - except for Hilbert.

"Gee, I don't know..." said Hilbert.

"Come on, Hilbert," said Ricardo, "I saw it in theaters last year, and I really liked it. Of course, I won't spoil the movie for you."

"Well...okay," said Hilbert.

"You can sit next to me," said Ricardo.

Hilbert and Ricardo sat down on one of the sofas. The other members of Hilbert's unit crowded around the huge flat-screen TV.

"And now," said Sebastian, "here is the movie you've all been waiting for. Let me get the DVD ready."

Sebastian put the DVD in the player and turned it on. He then used the remote to start playing the movie.

"Don't worry if you don't like it," said Ricardo. "Everyone's opinion counts."

"I'm ready for anything," said Hilbert.

The movie started playing. It was an action-adventure-comedy movie, starring sharply-dressed British actors as the Kingschaps. The star was a chap named Gazza. Let's see one scene where he is talking with his friend Rupert.

"I need more booze," said Gazza.

"Didn't you already have enough to drink?" said Rupert.

"Of course not, you wanker," said Gazza. "I never have enough to drink."

Everyone laughed along with this, including Hilbert. There was another scene with an attractive American woman named Miss Violet sitting in a restaurant atop a mountain. She was one of the villains, and she was flanked by robot Lycanroc.

"And as soon as I go over my cliched diabolical plan...Kingschaps is crumpets," she said. "No more Kingschaps, no more football, no more Spice Girls, no more spelling whiskey without an E, no more use of the word 'bloody'..."

This made Hilbert nearly fall off the sofa laughing.

But unfortunately, things were soon to change. There was a scene where Gazza's girlfriend Rosie and most of the other Kingschaps get killed. Hilbert found this somewhat hard to stomach, but he didn't say anything. There was another scene where the Kingschaps were told to go to America. Hilbert had an idea where this was going, and it was not pleasant. But soon enough...

"Howdy, y'all," said a fat, pale-skinned southern-looking guy in a cowboy outfit. "I'm Cletus Thurmond, leader of the Statesbros. We're your American cousins." The guy shot bullets with his Remington rifle and said "YEEHAW! God bless 'Murica!"

"God doesn't exist," said Gazza. "Of course, you rednecks are too busy reading your Jesus fairy tales to know that."

Hilbert, who was busy enjoying a soda, spat it all out.

"What the?" he said. What made it worse was that Hilbert saw that a few of his co-workers were laughing. Thankfully, Ricardo wasn't.

Hilbert started to pay attention to the movie's content. He began to notice that the movie had incessant drinking, gratuitous violence, constant swearing, loads of shock humor, and so much national stereotyping it would make the writers of Hetalia blush.

"Hey," said Hilbert, "this isn't funny!"

"Relax," said Allison. "It's just a movie."

The movie gradually got more unpleasant. Now cut to a scene where Cletus is in his office. There is a big Confederate flag on the wall, as well as loads of pictures of women in bikinis clipped from magazines. On his desk is a bottle of whiskey and a King James Bible.

"Cletus," said Cletus' female assistant, Billie-Jo Calhoun, who wore Daisy Dukes and a halter top. "I need your help with these files." Hilbert began to notice that all of the Statesbros had last names taken from racist politicians.

"I'd like to help you," said Cletus, who was reading a Playboy magazine, "but I have a Klan rally that I have to be at in 10 minutes. And after that, I'm going to go to another rally to protest the faggot agenda."

Hilbert blushed at this scene, but he saw that Emil was laughing uncontrollably.

"Emil, cut that out!" said Hilbert.

Another scene involved the movie's big bad, the President, who was an obvious reference to You-Know-Who. He was in his dungeon, laughing.

"HAW HAW HAW!" said the orange President. "The Statesbros are doing great. Soon the Kingschaps will be destroyed, and I'll be able to take over the world and rub my big, fat blond toupee over it!" The guy started shooting two Remington rifles as a demonic being looking like a frog started to float in the air.

"The Kingschaps will go to hell and burn," said the frog demon. "FEELS GOOD MAN!"

"And now the princess will be mine!" he said. He walked over to a cage where he kept Annika, the crown princess of Sweden. He had her dressed in a super-revealing bikini.

"Save me! Save me!" said Annika.

"Dear God," said Hilbert, "this movie feels like a Saturday morning cartoon."

But the real kicker was when Gazza and the Kingschaps were in Unova. After they one-upped Cletus (who obviously turned out to be a villain), they made their escape. They were taking off from Liberty Garden, and as they took off, they burned the lighthouse with their jet plane.

"Fuck America!" said Gazza. "Fuck your Jesus, fuck your spray tans, fuck your reality shows, fuck your butchering of the English language!"

"That's it!" said Hilbert. "I'm not sitting around to watch this anymore!"

Hilbert got up and started to walk away.

"Where are you going?" asked Allison. "We've still got an hour of the movie left."

"You can watch it without me," said Hilbert.

Hilbert walked up to Sebastian.

"Sebastian!" he said. "This 'movie' you're showing us is really offensive. You expct me to sit through three hours of degrading stereotypes, painfully obvious political allegories, incessant drinking, constant F-bombs, disgusting shock humor, and...Elton John?"

"Oh, Hilbert," said Sebastian. "When are you ever going to stop being so naive? Personally, I think you're just jealous of us British guys. We're stylish, sophisticated, learned, eloquent, gentlemanly, scientific, and respectful. And as for you Yank guys? Crass, vulgar, poorly-dressed, ignorant, trashy, overweight, racist, sexist, homophobic, fanatically religious...so beneath us."

"Then why do you even work here?" asked Hilbert. "If you think people in this country are 'beneath' you, you can just go back to where you came!"

Sebastian got up and marched up to Hilbert, standing very uncomfortably close to him.

"Listen up, you idiot," said Sebastian, who talked quietly but furiously. "I'm allowed to fucking do what I fucking want. And if you don't fucking like it, I will tell Lusamine and get your sorry arse fired."

"Sebastian..." said Hilbert.

"Now you're making me miss the movie," said Sebastian. "Why don't you go back to your own room and let the rest of us watch our movie."

Hilbert growled.

"Fine!" he said. "I don't have to sit around listening an asswipe like you!" He stormed out of the rec hall.

By now, Emil had noticed that Hilbert was not there anymore.

"Where is Hilbert?" Emil asked Ricardo.

"He's probably going back to his room," said Ricardo. "He told me he wasn't enjoying the movie. I'll go talk to Hilbert."

"Don't you want to see the end of the movie?" asked Tom.

"Nah," said Ricardo. "I've seen this movie before. I'm worried about Hilbert."

Ricardo went over to Hilbert's room. He knocked on the door.

"Door's unlocked," said Hilbert.

Ricardo opened the door and looked at Hilbert. Hilbert was curled up on his bed, wearing a black T-shirt and a pair of purple and red striped boxers.

"Hello, Ricardo," said Hilbert. "Why aren't you watching your movie?"

"I was getting worried about you," said Ricardo. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah," said Hilbert in a bland, monotone voice.

"I can tell something's on your mind," said Ricardo. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Ricardo sat down at the edge of Hilbert's bed.

"It's just not fair," said Hilbert. "Everyone tries being nice to Sebastian, and he treats everyone like they're beneath him."

"I get what you're saying," said Ricardo. "Sebastian can be like that sometimes. Believe me...I hate him almost as much as you do. He's very mean to most of the people here. I feel like he only pretends to be nice so Lusamine won't fire him."

"I'd never try to get him fired," said Hilbert.

"I wouldn't either," said Ricardo, "but as my dad always says, you don't choose your co-workers. Sometimes you end up working with people who drive you crazy."

Hilbert sat up and looked at Ricardo.

"I understand," he said. "But Sebastian has the wrong idea of me. He thinks I'm a fan of that...orange menace."

"He knows you're not," said Ricardo. "He just wanted to make you feel bad."

"As for that movie..." said Hilbert, "I didn't find those stereotypical American characters funny. I found it kind of insulting."

"You're not the only one," said Ricardo.

"But you said you enjoyed _Kingschap: The Golden Pentagram_ ," said Hilbert.

"Not all of it," said Ricardo. "Between you and me...I thought a lot of it was just ridiculous."

"Then why did you react differently than I did?" asked Hilbert.

"I try to be polite," said Ricardo. "I didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings. If you want, we can talk to Wicke about it tomorrow. Maybe she can do something to help you feel better."

"I'd start with letting someone else pick the movie next time we have a movie night," said Hilbert.

"There's one other thing I think you should remember," said Ricardo. "Remember that it's just a movie. It's not like it was real or anything."

Hilbert got up from his bed and looked out the window to admire the night sky. He smiled, and turned around.

"You're right," said Hilbert. "I shouldn't get so worked up about it. Maybe I was being a little too sensitive. Thank you."

Hilbert hugged Ricardo.

"You're welcome, Hilbert," said Ricardo.

"Bye the way," said Hilbert, "what happens at the end of the movie?"

"The ending's really corny," said Ricardo. "Gazza rescues Annika, makes a sappy declaration of love, and marries her. Oh, and a Lena Dunham lookalike becomes President of the United States."

Hilbert burst out laughing since he found it completely ridiculous.

"I'm going to be going to bed soon," said Hilbert. "Do you want to stay?"

"No thanks," said Ricardo. "I'm going to take a little walk, and then I'm going to see how everyone is doing. The movie will probably be over by then."

"Okay," said Hilbert. "Goodnight, Ricardo!"

"Goodnight, Hilbert!" said Ricardo. He walked out the door, closing it behind him.

Hilbert lay down in his bed. He smiled, trying to think of pleasant things to distract him from the movie he saw.


	17. Hilbert Meets Nanu

**CHAPTER 17: HILBERT MEETS NANU**

The next day, Hilbert woke up to a rainy day. He had breakfast in his room since he felt uncomfortable having breakfast with his unit due to last night's incident. He got dressed and ready for work.

Hilbert stayed in the conservation area, carefully feeding the Corsola. He was trying to avoid other people in his unit, with the exception of Ricardo.

While Hilbert was feeding the Corsola, Emil walked up to him.

"Hello, Hilbert," he said.

Hilbert turned around.

"What, Emil?" he said coldly.

"I finished those notes you wanted me to take down," said Emil. He showed Hilbert his notes. Hilbert took them.

"Thanks," said Hilbert.

Emil walked over to Ricardo, Kiana, and Allison.

"What's wrong with Hilbert this morning?" Emil asked Ricardo.

"I think he's still upset about the movie," said Ricardo.

"I'm getting worried," said Kiana. "Hilbert didn't show up for breakfast this morning."

"Something must be bothering him," said Allison. She looked at Hilbert. "Hilbert! Can you come over here?"

Hilbert walked over to the group.

"What is it?" asked Hilbert.

"We wanted to tell you something," said Emil.

"What?" said Hilbert coldly.

"We wanted to say..." said Allison, "that we're sorry about last night."

Hilbert smiled.

"You are?" he said. "Thanks!"

"I just talked to Wicke," said Ricardo, "and Sebastian won't be picking movies again. That movie we saw last night won't be shown here for quite some time - at least, not until after you go back to Unova."

Hilbert hugged Ricardo.

"Thank you, Ricardo!" said Hilbert.

"Don't mention it," giggled Ricardo.

"But what about Sebastian?" asked Hilbert.

"If Sebastian messes up again, he's going to be transferred to another unit," said Ricardo. "Now let's get back to work."

"Fine by me!" said Hilbert.

And so Hilbert went back to work and put the previous night's incident behind him.

The next day, Hilbert received a call from Hilda. He was asked to report to Ula'ula Island right away. Hilda had reassured Hilbert that he was not in any trouble. It turned out that Hilda had asked Nanu if he wanted to have an audience with Hilbert. Nanu agreed to it, for he liked getting visitors. Hilbert asked Wicke for special leave, and she agreed to it.

Hilbert dressed himself in a blue and purple striped shirt and green shorts. He arrived in Loaloa Town, a small town located on the west coast of Ula'ula Island. Hilda greeted him at the docks.

"Hey there, cuz!" said Hilda. "Nanu's been expecting you."

"Does he live around here?" asked Hilbert.

"No," said Hilda. "He lives further to the north, on Route 17, in a run-down police station, but he's not home right now. His little friend Acerola is with him. She calls him uncle, but they're not actually related."

"I guess Nanu doesn't have much of a family," said Hilbert.

"Actually, that's not true," said Hilda. "Nanu has a very large extended family. Manu, one of his biological nephews, used to be one of Alola's Trial Captains - Acerola took over when Manu got too old to do it. Trial Captains have to retire once they turn 20. It's true that he's never been married, but that doesn't matter to him. Nanu may be somewhat cold on the outside, but he's a lot nicer than he looks. He's done a lot of cool stuff while he was in the International Police and he's helped so many people."

"I've seen him on TV," said Hilbert. "He has a heavy smoker's voice."

Hilda giggled.

"That he does," said Hilda. "I know that Nanu will like you."

Hilbert and Hilda left the docks. Hilda told Hilbert more about Nanu. Hilbert felt that he probably didn't have to ask a lot about Nanu. They were still talking about Nanu when they ran into Nanu himself at Ula'ula Meadow. Nanu stood with his friend Acerola.

"Hello there!" said Acerola. She turned to Nanu. "This must be Hilbert, Uncle Nanu!"

Nanu smiled his freakish smile and reached his hand out.

"Why hello, Hilbert," said Nanu. "Hilda here's told me all about you."

Hilbert shook hands with Nanu.

"Hello there, Nanu," said Hilbert. He looked around the meadow. "Wow...it's so beautiful here!"

"I get to see it from my window at home," said Nanu. "It is beautiful, but it loses the novelty after you've known it for over 50 years."

Hilbert laughed.

"I've heard about that incident in Aether Paradise," said Acerola. "Uncle Nanu's not worried about it. He and Lusamine don't see eye to eye. Don't know why, though. He never wants to tell me."

"So," said Hilbert, "I heard you're the kahuna of this island. What's it like?"

"It's not exactly fun," said Nanu. "You have a lot of responsibilities - you have to preside over events and holidays. I'm not a holiday person at all. You also have to visit the ruins on the island. I have to visit the Ruins of Abundance, which are the most inaccessible of the ruins, since it's in the desert. Tapu Bulu is kind, and I think we have a lot in common. You're expected to know about politics too - I try to stay away from politics since most politicians are crooks. Being the only white kahuna means I have to hear about all those SJW freaks running around telling me I'm committing 'cultural appropriation'. My nephew Manu keeps me informed on stuff young people do. People are way too sensitive these days. I also can't travel outside of Alola much since I'm needed so much here. Before that, I've been to a lot of places all over the world. If I had the choice, I wouldn't have become kahuna. But when Tapu Bulu chose me, I could not decline - it's the law of the land."

"Is there any good that comes out of it?" asked Hilbert.

"There's good stuff too," said Nanu. "I get special privileges denied to most people, such as being able to access special chambers in the ruins. The altar of Tapu Bulu is pretty cool, and he responds to the offerings I give. I think we have a lot in common too. I admit, I don't belong to any religion, but I do have faith in the tapus and trust them in guarding this island."

"Uncle Nanu's pretty intelligent," said Acerola. "He's very good with Pokemon too. He has a lot of Alolan Meowth and takes good care of them."

"I enjoy their company," said Nanu. "They don't care who you are." Nanu gazed at Hilbert. "I've heard a lot about you too. People tell me that you're a very good-hearted young man - and a very strong Pokemon Trainer. You also care deeply about your family, especially your mother. I like seeing that."

"Gee, thanks," said Hilbert, blushing.

"Remember, Hilbert," said Nanu. "This world has all kinds of people, both good and bad. What may appear on the outside of someone is not always indicative of what is on the inside. A hideous, deformed person may be a kind, gentle soul, and a beautiful, seemingly perfect person may be as cruel as a dictator. I may seem like a cold, gruff, lazy person to most people, but I care about those around me. Be very careful about who you meet and how to deal with them."

"I won't Nanu," said Hilbert.

"Now," said Nanu, "I'm getting hungry. Let's go to the diner in Loaloa Town for lunch. I'll pay for all of you."

"Thanks!" said everyone else.

Nanu, Acerola, Hilbert, and Hilda went to Loaloa Town to have lunch together. Hilbert and Nanu got to know more about each other, and became fast friends. When Hilbert returned to Aether Paradise that evening, he had a lot to tell to his friends. Hilbert felt that life was treating him well.


	18. A Top-Secret Mission

_**A/N:** Once I get to chapter 20, the action is really going to pick up. To be quite honest, I think this fanfic has way too much padding, and I'd like to get some action pretty soon._

 _Since Pokemon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon come out tomorrow, I'll be incorporating elements from them into this fic from now on._

* * *

 **CHAPTER 18: A TOP-SECRET MISSION**

For the next two weeks, Hilbert had taken things pretty easily. He managed to get a lot of work done and completed several missions. He kept in touch with Hilda.

Then, one day, something very strange happened. Hilbert was asked to come to the laboratories. He had never been to the laboratories before. Wicke approached Hilbert while he was in the conservation area.

"Hilbert," she said, "there's something very important I need to tell you."

Hilbert followed Wicke down the elevator to the laboratories. She led him to Secret Lab B. The ambiance of this room was very unnerving.

"So," said Hilbert, "what do you want to tell me?"

"This information I am going to share you is only for a select few," said Wicke. "Since you are a very experienced Pokemon Trainer, I figured that I could recruit you." Wicke's face turned very solemn. "Have you ever heard the term 'Ultra Beast'?"

"No," said Hilbert. "What is an Ultra Beast?"

"I'll tell you," said Wicke. "Ultra Beasts are extradimensional Pokemon that come from the Ultra Space. Normally, the boundaries between our world and the Ultra Space are strong, but Alola is one of the places in this world where the boundaries are weaker. Ultra Beasts have been sighted in Alola many times, but it's only been recently that we have been able to amass information on them. Professor Mohn was the first to describe the Ultra Wormhole and the Ultra Beast Nihilego."

Wicke showed Hilbert a document containing information about Nihilego, one of the Ultra Beasts.

"As you can see," said Wicke, "Nihilego is one of many Ultra Beasts. Exactly how many different kinds of Ultra Beast there are is unknown. Cosmog, the Pokemon that had gone missing a few weeks ago, is suspected to be an Ultra Beast."

"Interesting," said Hilbert. "What do I have to do?"

"I have given you an important task," said Wicke. "Gather as much information as possible on the Ultra Beasts. You will be working with the International Police."

Hilbert was shocked.

"I guess this means bye-bye Aether Paradise," said Hilbert.

"Now then," said Wicke, "don't panic. You will still be able to visit Aether Foundation, though not on a daily basis. We have a building not far from Hano Grand Resort, where you will be staying. I am going to give you three days (including today) to get ready."

"What about Ricardo, Emil, and the others in my unit?" asked Hilbert.

"Don't worry," said Wicke. "You shall still see them. Ricardo will come visit you frequently."

Hilbert started giggling out of nervousness.

"Man, oh man," he said. "I really don't know what to do. Who am I going to tell?"

"You can tell the other members of your unit," said Wicke, "but don't be too detailed about it. Gossip spreads pretty quickly here. I realize that trying to hide this from others might be hard."

"Tell me about it," said Hilbert.

"Remember," said Wicke, "Ultra Wormholes are unpredictable, and may appear and disappear at will. Exercise extreme caution if you see one. Those who fall through the Ultra Wormhole will gain the status of Faller. Fallers are people who have traveled through the Ultra Wormhole. Ultra Beasts are attracted to Fallers, and will follow them without them even knowing. Once you have become a Faller, you will remain a Faller for the rest of your life. Fallers can still lead normal lives, but they must be very careful in areas where the bounds between our world and the Ultra Wormhole are weak."

Hilbert found this conversation very unnerving, but he listened to it without complaining.

"Furthermore," said Wicke, "once you relocate to Akala Island, you will find lots of new information about the Ultra Wormhole. Remember to take notes on it. Every note counts. On Akala Island, there are several places that have had sightings of Ultra Beasts. These include Diglett's Cave, Wela Volcano Park, Lush Jungle, and Memorial Hill. The International Police will provide you with information on sightings in those places. So...you up to the job?"

"I'm up to it!" said Hilbert.

"Thank you," said Wicke. "I wish you the best of luck. Remember...be very careful!"

When Hilbert got back to his room, he could think of nothing else besides what Wicke had told him. It sent chills down his spine. Now Hilbert has another adventure on the horizon...


	19. Aether Transfer

**CHAPTER 19: AETHER TRANSFER**

On the big day, Hilbert was at the docks with all of his luggage. Here he would say goodbye to his Aether Foundation friends.

"I'm going to miss you all," said Hilbert.

"It's not the end," said Kiana. "We'll still see each other from time to time."

"Yeah," said Hilbert, "but not on a regular basis."

"These past several weeks were great," said Allison. "Good luck with your mission!"

"Don't forget to send us photos!" said Emil.

"I won't, Emil," said Hilbert.

Hilbert turned to Ricardo.

"Thanks for everything," Hilbert told Ricardo. "I couldn't have made it through without you."

"Thanks, Hilbert," said Ricardo. "I'm really going to miss you. Good luck!"

Hilbert bade everyone farewell and got on the ferry.

Wicke was accompanying Hilbert. Faba was also present. Hilbert hadn't seen much of Faba since he spent most of his time with Lusamine, but Faba wanted to get to know Hilbert better, so he took the lead.

"You are going to like our Aether Foundation bungalow on Akala Island," said Faba. "You will be having your own room, located on the third floor. Unfortunately, we only rent the building, so we couldn't provide white decor. Your room's walls are dark purple."

"I don't mind," said Hilbert. "Purple is my favorite color. How do you know so much about interior design?"

"My brother is a famous interior designer," said Faba. He showed Hilbert a photo of his brother. "This is my brother, Clemens Lindenbaum." Hilbert noted that Clemens looked exactly like Faba, except he was wearing a red velvet vest and matching slacks. "We're not twins. I'm older by four years. I'm 39 and he's 35. Clemens is really nice - maybe a little too nice, if you ask me. Clemens has a wife and two sons, but I'm a bachelor. He lives back in Ulm." Hilbert noted that Faba spoke with a German accent.

Faba handed Hilbert another photograph. It showed Faba and his brother wearing matching vests and slacks. They were standing in front of a massive cathedral. Both of them were smiling.

"That's me and Clemens standing in front of the cathedral in our glorious hometown," said Faba. "That church you're looking at there is the tallest in the world. My brother and sister-in-law attend services there every Sunday."

"Wow," said Hilbert.

"Climbing it is a real chore," said Faba. "Because it's an old building, there's no elevator, and the staircase gets narrower as you go up. But the climb is worth it. since the scenery at the top is amazing. I've climbed it on multiple occasions."

Hilbert looked up at the ceiling, and then back at Faba.

"So," said Hilbert, "is Faba short for Fabian or something?"

"That's correct," said Faba. "I don't like being called Fabian, though. Where I come from, Fabians are everywhere."

"Oh," said Hilbert.

Pretty soon, Hilbert docked in Heahea City. A shuttle took him to the building where he was staying. Faba and Wicke decided to show Hilbert around. To Hilbert's pleasant surprise, Hilda was there.

"So glad to see you, Hilbert!" said Hilda. "We're going to be working together!"

"Isn't that awesome?" said Hilbert.

"Of course!" said Hilda. "The building where I work at is only 20 minutes away from here. We'll see each other all the time!"

"You two know each other?" asked Faba.

"We're cousins," said Hilda. "We grew up together."

"Hilda joined the International Police the same day Hilbert joined the Aether Foundation," said Wicke.

Another man approached the group. It was Osman, one of Hilda's co-workers.

"Hilda's helped me with a lot of cases," said Osman. "Ah, Faba! It's so nice to see you again!"

"Oh," said Faba. "You're Orhan, aren't you?"

"It's Osman," said Osman.

"Right," said Faba. "You're the Turkish officer with the Crabominable."

"Faba's not as good with names as I am," said Wicke. "No offense, Faba."

"None taken," said Faba.

"Hilda has told me a lot about her cousin," said Osman. "Pleased to meet you, Hilbert." Osman shook Hilbert's hand.

"You're going to like this place, Hilbert," said Wicke. "There's all sorts of technology here. There's even a library in the basement so you can study. What's more is that your privacy will be respected here. After all, I'm a firm believer in the right to privacy."

"You won't have to worry about pesky kids either," said Faba. "This building has a rule that no one under eleven is allowed to enter. That means a soccer mom with six screaming little brats can't get in. That's so we can keep it quiet."

"Faba's not fond of little kids," said Wicke. "That's part of the reason why he's not married."

"But what about your nephews?" said Hilbert.

"They're different because they're family," said Faba. "Anyway...today's going to be a pretty quiet day, since you're just settling in. Tomorrow we're going to have work for you concerning the you-know-what."

Hilbert smiled. He was looking forward to his assignment.

"I'm a little nervous," said Hilbert.

"Don't be nervous, Hilbert," said Hilda. "I'm confident that you will catch on to this Ultra Beast stuff pretty quickly."

"Maybe," said Hilbert, "but I know next to nothing about the Ultra Beasts. I didn't even know what they were until a few days ago."

"No need to worry, Hilbert," said Wicke. "I'm here to guide you. I admit, even Lusamine herself doesn't know everything about the Ultra Beasts, and she knows more about them than I do. Still, we find out new things about the Ultra Beasts every day. I'm sure it won't be a problem."

Hilbert shrugged.

"I guess," said Hilbert. "I promised Wicke that I'm ready to take a challenge, so I'm going to do it!"

"That's the spirit, Hilbert!" said Hilda.

"The International Police also keeps up-to-date on the Ultra Beasts," said Osman. "We usually call them by code names. Supposedly, Officer Nanu came face-to-face with a particularly nasty one ten years ago."

"It's true," said Hilda. "According to Nanu, it didn't end well - not at all."

"Okay," said Wicke. "I have to return to Aether Paradise soon, so I'm going to say goodbye. If you need anything, just talk to Faba. He's not returning until late. Good luck, Hilbert!" Wicke hugged Hilbert.

"Thanks, Wicke!" said Hilbert.

Wicke said goodbye to everyone and left.

"And so the next chapter in my Alolan journey begins," Hilbert said to himself.

"Now them," said Hilda, "one of the other co-workers is going to be making dinner. Care to stay for dinner, Faba?"

"I'd be glad to," said Faba. "What are we having?"

"We're having a pu pu platter," said Hilda.

"Mmm!" said Hilbert. "Count me in!"

And so the group had dinner together.


	20. Hilbert's New Friend

**CHAPTER 20: HILBERT'S NEW FRIEND**

After dinner, Faba gave Hilbert a tour of the facility.

"So," said Faba, "there's the game room, there's the men's bathroom, that's the stairway that leads to the rooftop garden..." He then opened a door. "And this sentimental charmer is your room. Get comfortable." Faba looked around. "Boy, oh boy, I sure would love to be President! That sap Lusamine will surely get it."

"What was that?" asked Hilbert.

"Nothing," said Faba.

Hilbert went inside his room. As Faba walked away, he laughed evilly.

"Well," said Hilbert, "this is a nice place."

Hilbert looked around the room. The walls and decor were purple. There was a nice, comfy bed for Hilbert to sleep in. Hilbert packed away his belongings, and then he decided to get comfortable. He put on a red and white striped T-shirt and a blue speedo.

"I think I might check out the rooftop garden," he said.

Hilbert took out a Spheal beach towel and wrapped it around his waist. He then took a pair of sunglasses and put them on his face. He then went up the stairs to the rooftop garden. He lay his towel down and then sat down on it, slowly laying his head back onto the ground.

"Ah," said Hilbert, glad the sun is hot and bright today. This is the life." Hilbert took off his shirt and lay it under his head.

In a few minutes, Hilda came upstairs and saw Hilbert sunbathing.

"Hello, little cuz," said Hilda.

Hilbert looked up at Hilda.

"Hello, Hilda," said Hilbert.

"You seem to like this place already," said Hilda.

"This is such a great place," said Hilbert. "I think I'm going to like it here. By the way, when does my first mission start?"

"It starts in two days," said Hilda. "Right now, you'll have plenty of time to enjoy the evening sun."

The next morning, after breakfast, Hilbert went to sunbathe again. This time, he had some company.

A young man about Hilbert's age approached him. He was short, with pale skin and green hair styled like Hilbert's. He had a white Aether Foundation bathrobe on.

"Hello, mister," said the young man. He spoke in a Brazilian accent.

"Hello," said Hilbert.

"Do you mind if I sunbathe with you?" asked the young man.

"Sure," said Hilbert. "What's your name?"

"My name is Cesar Zappa," said the young man.

"Where are you from?" asked Hilbert.

"I'm from Brazil," said Cesar.

Cesar took off his bathrobe, revealing a black speedo. He lay next to Hilbert.

"I'm part of the Aether Foundation too," said Cesar.

"How come we've never met before?" asked Hilbert

"Well," said Cesar, "I'm new around here. I was hired ten days ago. Lusamine sent me straight here after I was hired."

"How did you get assigned to the Ultra Beast task?" asked Hilbert.

"I'd rather not talk about it," said Cesar.

"How old are you?" asked Hilbert.

"I'm eighteen," said Cesar. "I'm going to be turning nineteen in December."

"So young," said Hilbert. "I'm twenty. Did you go on a Pokemon journey when you were younger?"

"I sure did," said Cesar. "Traveling is so fun!"

Hilbert looked up at the sky.

"Alola's such a nice place," he said. "The weather's always warm and sunny. Well, most of the time."

"I like Alola too," said Cesar, "but sometimes I really miss home. I'm just glad that this job is only temporary. Is your job temporary too?"

"Yes," said Hilbert. "After my time is up I'm going back to Unova. That's where I come from."

"Unova..." said Cesar. "I heard that it's really beautiful."

"It sure is," said Hilbert, "although it doesn't compare to Alola's natural beauty. The beaches here are very nice too - great for surfing! I went surfing here a while ago and I really enjoyed it."

"I've gone surfing too," said Cesar. "Back home, I live along the coast." Cesar looked around. "So, Hilbert...looking forward to researching the Ultra Beasts?"

"I'm definitely looking forward to it," said Hilbert.

That night, Hilbert started to do research on the Ultra Beasts on the Aether Foundation website. He got plenty of notes from Wicke, who had compiled some notes back at Aether Paradise. Hilbert found this research fascinating, and felt that he'd love to see an Ultra Beast in person.


	21. The UB Library

**CHAPTER 21: THE UB LIBRARY**

On Hilbert's first day of work at his new site, he was given several tasks by Wicke. First, he had to do research on Grimer and Muk. He was given an Alolan Grimer named Cookie to observe.

"I have extensive knowledge of Grimer and Muk," said Hilbert. "This task should be easy."

"I'm glad to hear that," said Wicke. "Cookie will be there to assist you. He's an Alolan Grimer, so he might not be the kind you're used to."

"I'm not bothered by it," said Hilbert. "Aren't Alolan Grimer being exported?"

"That's true," said Wicke, "although they're being careful about it so the Alolan Grimer don't displace Trubbish like they did in Alola. Mostly they're trying to put them in areas where there are no Trubbish."

Hilbert observed Cookie for about five minutes and took notes down about his behavior, and compared and contrasted it to the regular Grimer.

"Alolan Grimer seem friendlier than the Grimer I'm used to," said Hilbert. "Still, I'm worried about the regular Grimer. I've heard that they're now in danger of extinction in Kanto. Erika, the Celadon Gym Leader, once told me on Facebook that Grimer haven't been seen in Celadon City in a while. We need to do something to help them. If there is no waste produced from the factories, then the Grimer will die off."

"It's a shame," sighed Wicke. "Sometimes even good ideas can have disastrous consequences."

Soon after, Wicke saw that Hilbert had gotten lots of notes down, so she left Hilbert to his work. Hilbert decided to go to the library in the basement. This was where notes about the Ultra Beasts were. Hilbert had obtained permission to go down there. When he got there, he saw Cesar. Like Hilbert, he was wearing an Aether Foundation uniform. Cesar was accompanied by a Lurantis.

"Good afternoon, Hilbert," he said.

"Hi, Cesar," said Hilbert.

"I've got some notes for you," said Cesar. "There's a location that we're going to be exploring tomorrow - it's the Lush Jungle."

"Cool," said Hilbert.

"Ultra Wormholes have been discovered there in the past," said Cesar.

"I guess we'll be going there soon," said Hilbert.

"Yeah," said Cesar.

Hilbert looked at the Lurantis.

"Who's this little fellow?" he asked Cesar.

"That there's Marmelo," said Cesar. "He's my trusty sidekick. I caught him back in my own country."

Hilbert reached out his hand to Marmelo's sickle claw.

"Snip snip!" said Marmelo.

"He's pretty friendly," said Cesar. "He needs to be groomed very often to maintain his pink hue, but he's actually not that picky. I keep him out of his Poke Ball fairly often because he doesn't like being in it. He likes to eat watermelon - he can cut through a watermelon like it's a stick of butter. Watermelons are said to be very good fro Lurantis' color."

"A watermelon's too big for me to carry around," said Hilbert.

"That's okay," said Cesar. "Marmelo is fine with other foods. He'll eat just about anything - except for mashed potatoes."

Hilbert laughed.

"I don't like mashed potatoes either," he said. "I guess we have that in common."

"I guess so," said Cesar. "I'm just glad that he's not a picky eater. Some Pokemon are, you know. It would be a real pain dealing with a picky eater."

Hilbert laughed.

"Does he like to be petted?" asked Hilbert.

"Sometimes," said Cesar, "but sometimes he can get fussy. He seems to be in a peaceful mood, so I guess you can go on ahead."

Hilbert pet Marmelo on the head. Marmelo giggled.

"He likes it," said Cesar. "I'm glad he does. Faba tried to pet Marmelo the other day, and Marmelo made threatening gestures at him. I guess he doesn't trust Faba."

Hilbert went to get one of the Aether Foundation's notebooks about Lush Jungle. He opened it up and looked through it. It had notes about all kinds of things related to the jungle, including native Pokemon, ingredients for recipes, temple ruins, and even notes on Ultra Beast sightings. But for now, Hilbert was content to read about the Lurantis.

"It says here on page 60 that the Lurantis in Lush Jungle live in colonies," said Hilbert. "They are ruled by the Totem Lurantis, who is the largest member of the colony. According to the notes, Totem Lurantis are nearly always female. Makes sense, since it also says that within their colonies, female Lurantis rank higher than male Lurantis. The Totem Lurantis awaits people who will face her as one of the trials in the Island Challenge. She especially loves to pick on Pokemon who have type advantages over her."

Marmelo looked a bit nervous at the sound of a Totem Lurantis.

"I'm guessing she's a lot bigger than Marmelo," said Cesar.

"It says that Totem Lurantis are often in excess of seven feet," said Hilbert, "so that means she's even bigger than I am! Other notes in here say that she's considered one of the toughest of all Totem Pokemon."

Marmelo whimpered.

Hilbert flipped over to towards the back of the book, where there were notes about Ultra Beasts.

"Okay," said Hilbert, "here we are. Ultra Beasts have been sighted many times in Lush Jungle throughout the centuries. The ones in Lush Jungle are all of the same type - they are described as very tall, tree-like, long-armed, and possessing strong Electric attacks. It has no face - its head is crystalline. Some of the sightings have occurred in the ruins in the temple located deep within the jungle."

Hilbert showed Cesar a picture of the Ultra Beast. It was indeed tall and tree-like. with long arms that wielded strong electricity.

"Do you think we're going to investigate it?" asked Cesar.

"Seems like it," said Hilbert. "Although I really hope we don't encounter it...nah, that's highly unlikely."

"It would be cool if we did," said Cesar. "I like seeing unusual Pokemon."

"Don't worry," said Hilbert. "Wicke told me that she will be accompanying us. She's always looking out for us."

"That is true," said Cesar. "Wicke's very dependable. I kinda wish she was the branch chief instead of Faba. She's a lot nicer than Faba."

Hilbert had begun to note that Cesar didn't seem to be too fond of Faba. He wondered why.

"Does Faba not like you or something?" asked Hilbert.

"I'm not sure," said Cesar, "but I feel that he does. He's not the friendliest of people."

"That's strange," said Hilbert. "He was nice to me when I first came to this building."

"I guess he has his favorites," said Cesar.

"I guess so," said Hilbert.

"Snip snip," said Marmelo.

Cesar looked at Marmelo.

"I think Marmelo is getting hungry," said Cesar. He looked at his Lurantis. "We're almost done. Then we can have a snack."

"Snip snip!" said Marmelo.

Hilbert and Cesar continued with their work, and when they were done, they had a snack with Marmelo.


	22. Lillie's Nightmare

**CHAPTER 22: LILLIE'S NIGHTMARE**

That night, a huge thunderstorm ravaged Alola. Hilbert slept comfortably, since he was a heavy sleeper. Lillie, on the other hand, was tossing and turning in her sleep. Professor Kukui's office wasn't like home, even if it was warm and loving.

Lillie could not help but think of Lusamine and how cruel she had been to Nebby. We now cut to Lillie's dream. We see Lillie in a strange-looking retro-futuristic house. Everything is black and white. She looks down at herself and sees that she is wearing a black bikini with a green belt on the bottoms. Her body is shorter and chubbier. She pounds her arm and notices that it is solid metal.

"I'm a robot!" said Lillie.

Lusamine came in. She was dressed in a lab coat over a shirt, tie, and pants. For some odd reason, she had a big nose and was sporting a black goatee.

"Time to measure you, Lillie!" said Lusamine. She made a creepy nasal laugh. She put Lillie on a scale and measured her. "I don't understand how after all these years, you haven't grown a single inch. Why can't you grow? Please, grow a little..."

Lillie's head sprang up about a foot. Lusamine screamed.

"Not like that, you robot!" said Lusamine. She growled, grabbed a cane, and started to hit Lillie.

"Oh Mother, please stop!" cried Lillie. "You said you loved me like your own flesh and blood! After all, I'm your daughter! I'm your very own Astro Girl!""

"Flesh and blood?" said Lusamine. "Well that's a joke, you foolish girl. A hideous JOKE!"

"Mother, don't say that!" cried Lillie. Lusamine started walking out. Lillie ran after her. "Mother, come back!"

"You're not my daughter!" yelled Lusamine. "You're a useless bucket of bolts who thinks it's my daughter!" Lillie grabbed Lusamine. "Let me go! LET ME GO!" Lusamine then fell down into a pool of water beneath the house. Some Pikipek started to poop on her. "That's IT! Lillie, you're banished from my house. If you want to live by yourself, I might as well PUT YOU OUT!"

Next, Lusamine was selling Lillie to a mysterious man.

"Lillie, COME HERE!" yelled Lusamine. Lillie walked over to Lusamine. "I've just sold you!"

"Oh no Mother, how could you?" cried Lillie. "You can't sell me!"

"It's too late, Lillie," said Lusamine. "You belong to him now! You mean nothing to me. Now go and pack your things before I dismantle you."

"But Mother!" cried Lillie. "I can't believe you!"

"What's not to believe?" said Lusamine. "After all, you're not a human child. You're nothing but a machine, like a refrigerator or a dishwasher. Remember, you're a robot!"

Lillie began to cry. The mysterious man revealed himself to be a cruel ringmaster. Cut to the circus, where Lillie is forced to do humiliating routines to the eyes of a sadistic audience. The ringmaster is whipping her all the while.

"WHAT DID I DO TO DESERVE THIS?" asked Lillie. She looked up. Lusamine was sitting in the audience, cruelly laughing at Lillie's suffering. Lillie couldn't help but scream.

 _ **"NO!"**_

Lillie woke up from her nightmare. She looked around. Although it was dark, she could see that everything was in color. She gave a light pound to her arm. It was made of flesh as it should be. She sighed.

The next day was the day that Hilbert went to Lush Jungle. Luckily, the thunder had stopped, and the skies were clear.

Hilbert looked around the jungle, taking field notes as he observed the various phenomena. Hilbert found no traces of Ultra Beasts so far, until...

"Hilbert!" said Cesar. "Come look here!"

Hilbert followed Cesar to a deep part of Lush Jungle. He led him to a path of weird footprints. They looked like plugs, but with a back toe on them.

"These don't look like any footprints I've ever seen," said Hilbert.

"That's why I'm sketching them." said Cesar. "Once we get back to the house, I'm going to show these to Wicke. She'll be able to determine what they are."

Hilbert took out a camera.

"I'm going to take a few photos," he said. He photographed the footprints.

"Wicke's going to be happy to get all this information," said Cesar. He turned to Hilbert. "Do you like working with me?"

"I sure do," said Hilbert, "even if these outfits get kinda sweaty."

Cesar and Hilbert laughed.

Marmelo walked over to Hilbert and Cesar with a mango between its claws. It cut the mango in half, gave one half to Cesar, and the other half to Hilbert.

"Don't mind if I do," said Hilbert, taking a bite of mango.

Meanwhile, Lillie had gone to the Kawaii Toy-chan Store, an anime toy store at the mall in Hau'oli City. She was going there to check out some cute Pokemon dolls. She went into the store and looked around. The ambiance was very happy - cutesy J-pop music was playing. The store's walls were pink and white with cute Pokemon and other anime creatures on the walls.

"This place is so sweet," said Lillie.

Lillie walked over to a box where there were lots of cute Pokemon dolls. At the top of the box was a Clefairy doll.

"Aw," said Lillie, "that doll looks so sweet - just ever-so sweet! I think I'm going to get this one."

Lillie took the Clefairy doll out of the box and took it to the register. She paid for it and the clerk put it in a bag.

"I think I'll look around more," said Lillie. She walked through the store, eyeing the cutesy dolls. There was tons of Hello Kitty merchandise, as well as Sailor Moon dolls, Yoshi dolls, a pocky maker, and even kawaii poo figures.

However, Lillie's fun soon turned to fear. She looked at the dolls in the back. While looking at a Cardcaptor Sakura tote bag, she accidentally knocked down a plush doll that was on the shelf behind her. She picked it up. It was a doll of Dr. Tenma from Astro Boy.

"Oh...no..." she said.

Lillie saw the doll and promptly screamed. She ran out of the store, clutching the bag with her Clefairy doll and dropping that other doll.

In the meantime, Hilda was in the store, trying to find Hilbert a present. She had been given the day off. She thought Hilbert would love a new plush to keep him company. She didn't want to get him a Pokemon doll since he already had tons of them.

"Is that girl okay?" Hilda asked herself. She did not know Lillie, therefore she didn't recognize her.

Hilda walked over to the floor where the doll that Lillie dropped lay. Hilda picked it up and noticed it had a non-threatening face despite being in the likeness of a villain.

"How could she be scared of something so helpless?" said Hilda. She looked at it. "I think Hilbert would love to take care of you...even if you are a lousy parent." Hilda made the doll talk. "My name is Tenma. I like to eat kawaii tacos!" She grabbed a plush taco and pretended to feed it to the doll. Hilda laughed. "I'm going to go pay for this."

Hilda took the doll to the register and paid for it. She also paid for a travel mug with kawaii donuts on it - this she got for herself.

After paying for everything, Hilda exited the store. She decided to go to the Aether Foundation building where Hilbert was staying. She left the doll she got for Hilbert in his bedroom, and wrote a note and left it on the table. This was for when Hilbert got back.

As for Lillie, she had gone back to Professor Kukui's lab. Professor Kukui had gone to a science fair and wouldn't be back for some time. Lillie did her usual work, and then went to the loft to relax. She was still haunted by the nightmare she had last night, and that doll she saw at the toy store definitely didn't help matters. She sat down on her bed and sighed.

"Tonight's going to be a long night..." she said.


	23. A Wormhole Appears

**CHAPTER 23: A WORMHOLE APPEARS**

Two days later, Hilbert was in for a big surprise. Wicke came to see him in the noon.

"Hilbert," said Wicke, "I have an important announcement. An Ultra Wormhole has appeared in Lush Jungle, and we need a few people to investigate. Lusamine has selected you as one of the people to go on this mission since you're an experienced Trainer."

"Wow..." said Hilbert. "I'm flattered!"

"I'm glad you are," said Wicke. "Lusamine is thrilled about it too. She said you've impressed her."

"By the way," said Hilbert, "is this today?"

"Tonight, actually," said Wicke. "I've got some other good news: Ricardo is going to be accompanying you."

"YES!" said Hilbert. "What about Cesar?"

"I'm afraid Cesar has to stay behind," said Wicke. "Faba gave me some paperwork to give to him."

"I'm sorry to hear that," said Hilbert. "But I'm glad to take the offer. I'm going to tell Hilda right away!"

Not much later, Hilbert called Hilda and asked her to come over to help him prepare. The two of them talked.

"Investigating a wormhole?" asked Hilda. "That's so cool! Nanu told me about the mission. I'm going to be patrolling Akala Island at night. I'm so exciting for this!"

"I'm excited for me too!" said Hilbert.

"I'm a bit worried, though," said Hilda. "The Ultra Wormhole is not something to mess around with. Remember to stay with the group."

"I will," said Hilbert.

"Still," said Hilda, "it would be awesome to see an Ultra Wormhole for myself. I would love to go through it just to see what's in the other dimensions. Although I've heard that there have been people who entered the Ultra Wormhole and never returned."

"I know..." said Hilbert. "I think that's what happened to Mohn."

"Mohn?" asked Hilda.

"Lusamine's husband," said Hilbert. "He was the one who discovered it in the first place."

"Yeah," said Hilda. "The wormhole's not all fun and games. We don't know what lies in the other dimensions. Who knows what Pokemon live millions of light years away from us?" Hilda sighed. "In the unlikely event of you getting sucked in, I'll find a way to go after you."

"Thanks," said Hilbert.

"No problem," said Hilda. "Please, be very, very careful!"

That evening, as the sun was about to set, Hilbert stood outside of Lush Jungle with a group of a dozen people. Wicke was among them. Everyone was dressed for it, even Wicke, who remembered to wear sneakers instead of high heels. Ricardo and Kiana were also present.

"Hilbert!" said Ricardo. "Glad you could make it!"

Hilbert gave Ricardo a high five.

"We're so glad to see you, Hilbert," said Kiana. "Faba was supposed to come here, but you know what a jerk he is - never bothering to come help."

"I know..." said Ricardo. "But anyway, we're prepared for anything."

"And might I say you look good in camo print shorts," Kiana told Hilbert.

Hilbert then noticed Sebastian among the crowd. He groaned.

"Not him again!" he said.

"I beg your pardon, you ignorant American!" said Sebastian.

Ricardo stepped between the two.

"Now guys," he said, "no fighting!"

"Remember," said Wicke, "since there's twelve of us, we'll each go in threes. Hilbert is going to go with Ricardo and Kiana."

"Yes!" said Hilbert.

Sebastian gave Hilbert the V sign - not the peace sign, but the other sign (i.e. the one with the palm inward instead of outward). Hilbert knew exactly what this sign meant.

"Just ignore him," said Kiana.

After Wicke separated everyone into groups, she led them in the jungle. She told everyone to stay close to their respective groups. Hilbert, Ricardo, and Kiana took to the east of the jungle, facing the mountains. The whole jungle looked creepy at night.

Hilbert, Ricardo, and Kiana walked along a wooden pathway across a swamp. Hilbert was getting a little nervous.

"It's so creepy in here," he said.

While the three of them were crossing the path, Ricardo noticed some moist, smelly wires along the path.

"What is that?" he asked. "It smells like a cross between feces and electricity."

Hilbert looked at the refuse.

"It must be Ultra Beast poop," said Hilbert.

Ricardo held up the camera that he was wearing around his neck and took a few pictures.

Now let's look at Sebastian. He was getting bored and impatient with his co-workers, so while they were busy taking pics, he sneaked away from them and began to look for the wormhole. He was thinking of "helping" Hilbert.

Later that night, Hilbert, Ricardo, and Kiana came to the temple. They looked around for more evidence of Ultra Beasts. Hilbert looked down in a sinkhole. There was a huge piece of molted skin like that of a cockroach. It was pale white.

"Come take a look at this!" said Hilbert.

Ricardo zoomed his camera in and took some pictures.

"There's several of them," said Kiana. "I'm going to collect a sample." Kiana went to collect a sample of the Pokemon skin.

Not much later, Hilbert, Ricardo, and Kiana went to the higher altitudes to find more evidence of Ultra Beasts. They came across a patch of burnt foliage - actually, it was two patches located thirty feet apart, both charred.

While Ricardo was taking pictures and Kiana was taking notes, Hilbert heard strange noises. It sounded like a wormhole vibrating. It went on for five minutes, and then it suddenly stopped.

"What was that?" he asked. He looked to the group. "I'm going to investigate that noise."

Ricardo heard the noise.

"We better find its source," he said.

"I'll go too," said Kiana. "It's better that we go together."

Hilbert, Ricardo, and Kiana began to traverse the cliffs. Kiana kept her flashlight on so the group could see what was ahead of them. While the group approached the far end of the hill, they saw a shadowy figure.

"Is that an Ultra Beast?" asked Hilbert.

"I'll flash my flashlight over it," said Kiana.

Kiana flashed her flashlight over the figure. It turned out to be Sebastian.

"Cut it out!" he yelled. "Cut it out, you bastard!"

"Excuse me?" said Kiana.

Hilbert, Ricardo, and Kiana approached Sebastian.

"What are you doing here?" asked Ricardo. "Why aren't you with your group?"

"I just thought that I might help Hilbert," said Sebastian.

"Help me?" asked Hilbert. "After giving me the V-sign? No way!"

"I'm sorry about that," said Sebastian. "I'm terribly, terribly sorry for having treated you so badly."

"I heard you say this morning you thought this mission was stupid," said Ricardo. "You said Ultra Wormholes and Ultra Beasts don't exist."

"I did?" said Sebastian. "I was just kidding. I want to prove to you that Ultra Beasts are real."

Hilbert looked carefully at Sebastian. Something about him was off.

"I think I've been hearing some activity," said Sebastian. "I think I know where this sound is coming from."

The strange feeling in the air was getting to Hilbert.

"Fine by me," said Hilbert in a strangely monotone voice.

Sebastian led Hilbert, Ricardo, and Kiana along the path. As they traversed it, the sound grew louder and louder.

"Is it me," said Ricardo, "or do you feel like the sky is...opening?"

"I do," said Kiana.

"I'm beginning to get scared," said Hilbert.

"No need to be," said Sebastian.

"Maybe we should head back," said Hilbert.

"HILBERT!" yelled Sebastian. "I SAY WE GO FORWARD! YOU DO EXACTLY WHAT I SAY!"

Hilbert felt scared, noting that Sebastian now sounded even crueler than usual.

Finally, the group came to an ominous clearing where a bunch of ruined megaliths stood. This site looked extremely strange. All the megaliths were arranged in a perfect circle, perfectly oriented to the latitudes and longitudes of the world.

"What is this place?" asked Ricardo.

"I've been here before," said Kiana, "but only during the daytime. Were you here at night, Sebastian?"

"I was," said Sebastian, sounding reasonable again.

"They say this place is cursed," said Kiana. "The sky here is said to be unpredictable at times. No Pokemon ever come here except for the tapus."

"Why did you bring us here?" asked Hilbert.

"I wanted to see the wormhole for myself..." said Sebastian in a strange monotone voice. "The wormhole means a lot to me."

"Now I'm getting scared," said Ricardo. "I have the feeling that Sebastian might take out a gun and shoot us!"

"No need to worry..." said Sebastian. "You are safe with me."

Suddenly, the four of them heard the sky vibrate. A gap was opening out of nowhere. The vibrating grew so loud it was unreal. Then, at once, a wormhole appeared.

"An Ultra Wormhole..." said Ricardo.

"They really do exist..." said Sebastian.

The wormhole started vibrating and shaking. It felt like someone was going to be taken in.

"I'm getting out of here!" said Ricardo.

"We need to go back!" said Kiana.

Ricardo and Kiana began to flee. Hilbert tried to run, but by now, he was caught within the powerful grasp of the wormhole.

"Sebastian!" yelled Hilbert. "Help me!"

"Of course not!" said Sebastian. "It's every man for himself, you bastard! Have a nice time!"

Sebastian used his Ride Pager to summon his Charizard, who flew him away. Now Hilbert was all alone. The grasp of the Ultra Wormhole grew stronger. Hilbert tried to resist, but he was overpowered by the wormhole. Hilbert screamed in agony as the wormhole began to suck him in.

"HELP ME!" he yelled. "HELP MEEEEEEE!"

And at last, Hilbert was sucked into the Ultra Wormhole. Once he was completely in, the wormhole closed up and disappeared.

Ricardo and Kiana were running swiftly.

"That was a close one," said Kiana, "right, Hilbert?" She and Ricardo looked back and saw that Hilbert was not there.

"OH NO!" yelled Ricardo. "Hilbert's gone! I thought all three of us had escaped. We need to inform Wicke right away!"

Ricardo and Kiana told Wicke about what happened to Hilbert. Wicke immediately notified Lusamine, who notified Faba. She didn't take it seriously at first, but then after passing out after one too many glasses of champagne and waking up at 3 AM, she went to see Faba.

We see Faba in the lounge for high-ranking Aether Foundation members. He was sitting on the couch watching a flat-screen TV, wearing only a pair of white briefs. Around him were a bunch of empty pizza boxes. He was watching _Mommie Dearest_ on TV and laughing at all the stupid lines.

Lusamine entered the lounge and saw Faba. She grabbed the remote and turned off the TV.

"Good evening, Lusamine," said Faba.

"Good morning is more like it," said Lusamine. "When you showed up at 5 PM in your underwear for so-bad-it's-good movies, I said fine. ...Well, first I said eww, but then I said fine! Now it's almost morning and we're one employee short! We're going to start a search for him."

Faba burped.

"Whatever," said Faba. "I'll tell the rest of the foundation. Now let me get back to my movies."

Next chapter we'll see Hilbert's journey through the Ultra Wormhole...


	24. The Lost World

**CHAPTER 24: THE LOST WORLD**

Hilbert looked around and found himself in a void. The ambiance was extremely unpleasant. Lights were flashing in eerie patterns. Disturbing sounds could be heard. Hilbert had no sense of where the ground was.

"What is this place?" asked Hilbert.

Hilbert tried to think of a way to move. There was no sense in walking, since he was in the middle of hyperspace. He thought paddling his arms forward as if he were swimming might help.

Suddenly, Hilbert felt himself moving. It started slowly, but then it began to pick up. Hilbert was going faster and faster. He began to be tossed and turned through the wormhole. Whatever power was controlling this wormhole was clearly trying to send Hilbert somewhere.

After traveling several thousand light years, Hilbert began to be sucked into a warp hole. This hole was black and soulless. Hilbert was sucked in without any precaution. Once that happened, he fell right out of the sky and crashed to the ground, unconscious.

When Hilbert regained consciousness, he got up looked around. This place looked extremely creepy. The sky was pitch black, with a glowing red sun. All around him were the ruins of an immense city, with stone buildings hundreds of feet tall standing all around.

"Looks like I've been sucked right into the middle of Charn," said Hilbert, "or something like it."

Hilbert walked through the streets, trying to look for any sign of life. He spent a decent amount of time exploring the ruins, wondering what everything was. He walked over a great bridge, looking down at the dried-up riverbed. He began to walk deeper into the city, eventually reaching one building larger than all the others. This seemed to be a palace.

"I don't like this place," said Hilbert.

Hilbert entered the palace, which was frighteningly huge. There were statues of strange Pokemon that Hilbert had never seen before - some of them monstrous in appearance. After crossing three barren courtyards, Hilbert saw a fountain with a great statue, depicting the Pokemon Necrozma. Beneath it was a message in an unknown language.

A strange Pokemon appeared from behind Hilbert. It had a white head shaped like a bell and blue and pink lights. Its body was blue, pink, and yellow. Hilbert screamed as soon as he laid eyes on it.

"Do not be afraid, child," said the Pokemon. "I am not of this world either." He spoke in a serious but calm voice. His voice sounded like that of a young man, but Hilbert could tell he was much older than his voice sounded.

"How...how can you talk?" asked Hilbert. "What are you?"

"Allow me to introduce myself," said the Pokemon. "I am a Blacephalon. I am called Murmur, keeper of celestial history."

"I'm Hilbert..." said Hilbert.

"You are wondering as to how I can speak," said Murmur. "I was born during a rare equinox that only happens once every 10,000 years. As such I was blessed by the Original One with not only the ability to speak, but also with astronomically high intelligence and the ability to speak every language."

"What is this place?" asked Hilbert.

"This is the lost world of Luminus," said Murmur. He looked around. "It may not look like much now, but this once was a palace belonging to some of the greatest kings and queens in the universe. Allow me to show you."

"Lead the way," said Hilbert.

Murmur led Hilbert down a long series of halls. He then took Hilbert to the inner sanctum of the palace, which contained many painted statues of kings and queens. Hilbert noted that the ones at the near end of the hall looked kind and friendly, and they were tall and breathtakingly beautiful. Their clothes were colorful and their jewelry was heavy.

"Why would such kind people let this happen to their world?" Hilbert asked Murmur.

"These were the early rulers of Luminus," said Murmur. "They ruled over a golden age that lasted for thousands of years."

Hilbert and Murmur walked down further. He began to see pride in the statues' faces, but they still looked like good people.

"Alas," said Murmur, "it's all downhill from here. Come with me."

Murmur led Hilbert further down. Now the statues were beginning to take on a more negative appearance. They looked regal and splendid, but they also looked haughty and cruel. The friendly smiles of the earlier faces had given way to cruel smirks.

"These rulers don't look as kind," asked Hilbert.

"You are right," said Murmur. "This is where Luminus began to go bad. They started expanding their borders and subjugating other kingdoms. The rulers degenerated into cruelty and wickedness." Further down, the statues only got worse. The statues began to frighten Hilbert with their wicked expressions.

The last statue in the room was the worst of all. It depicted a beautiful, richly-dressed king with platinum blonde hair and bright green eyes. However, she looked so horrifyingly cruel and ferocious that Hilbert stepped back.

"Let me guess," said Hilbert. "There's a bell to ring to take this beast out of suspended animation. I know where this is going; I read the book."

"You are mistaken," said Murmur. "It is merely a statue. But I understand your reaction. That queen was one of the greatest tyrants the universe had ever known." Hilbert then noticed the wicked queen looked surprisingly like Lusamine.

"Do you know the story behind this queen?" asked Hilbert.

"I do," said Murmur. "I'll explain to you about this land. Luminus was inhabited by people who worshiped Necrozma, who bathed this world - and many others - in light. The kings and queens gave thanks to Necrozma for blessing their world with light. However, as time went on, the kings and queens grew wicked and strove to steal Necrozma's light and use it to their advantage. That queen was the most wicked ruler of all, and strove to slay Necrozma so she could gain immortality. Necrozma was mortally offended by her actions, and she challenged the queen to a battle. Necrozma defeated her, and when she tried to harm Necrozma, she responded by firing a powerful laser and obliterating the planet and turning it to ruins. The survivors fled to distant planets, and no more can be said of this world."

Hilbert looked at the statue of the wicked queen.

"Does Lusamine tie into this?" he asked Murmur.

"Lusamine?" asked Murmur. "I do not know of this Lusamine. Who are they?"

"She is a human from my world," said Hilbert. "She's my boss. She kinda looks like that queen."

"I would love to know more about her," said Murmur. He pondered for a few minutes, and took his head off in the meantime. Hilbert was shocked. "Yes, my head comes off. All Blacephalon are like that. Do not be alarmed. No matter where I put my head, I can always find it. It's pretty indestructible."

"Okay..." said Hilbert.

"Tell you what," said Murmur. "I think I can take you through the Ultra Wormhole back to your own world. It won't be easy, but I'm skilled at traveling through hyperspace. What is your world called?"

"Earth," said Hilbert.

"Ah!" said Murmur. "I think I know of it. My kind has visited your world in the past. I'm sure you'll be able to help me."

"I'll be a good help," said Hilbert. "Just one thing. When we get to my world, I think you'll have to hide. Your presence might scare people."

"I'll do as you wish," said Murmur. "Now, let's get out of this palace."

Murmur and Hilbert made their way out of the palace and traversed the city, looking for a wormhole. It took a long time to find a wormhole, and Hilbert was falling asleep. Eventually, Murmur found one. He awakened Hilbert and told him to come with him.

Soon. Murmur and Hilbert reached the wormhole.

"Hold on tight!" said Murmur, holding Hilbert's hand.

Murmur and Hilbert jumped into the wormhole.


	25. Ultra Space

**CHAPTER 25: ULTRA SPACE**

Once Murmur had taken Hilbert from Luminus, Hilbert felt a little relieved. However, he was beyond terrified. Ultra Space was a nightmarish world where Hilbert didn't know what to expect. Still, his new Blacephalon friend was kind and caring.

"Is Ultra Space safe?" Hilbert asked Murmur.

"For me," said Murmur, "I'd say most of the time it is pretty safe. Still, it's the wilderness to end all wildernesses. It's like exploring uncharted territory. Ultra Space transcends time and space. You can get from Adhara to Zubenelgenubi in no time."

"Those are stars," said Hilbert. "You can't set foot on a star - you'll burn up."

"Ah," said Murmur, "but stars have planets, many of them rock solid like your world. You possess a great sense of wit."

"I never thought so," said Hilbert. "It's hard for me to understand non-literal language. I have Asperger's."

"That may be so," said Murmur, "but you seem very intelligent. I can sense the intellect of others."

"Can you read minds?" asked Hilbert.

"That I cannot do," said Murmur. "I may be powerful, but I can't do everything."

Hilbert looked into the void of space and gazed at the cosmos. He could see billions of stars and galaxies. He looked through the white wormholes in the distance, where he saw images of Ultra Beasts - Nihilego, Buzzwole, Pheromosa, Xurkitree, Celesteela, Kartana, and Guzzlord - Pokemon he had never seen.

"This is amazing!" said Hilbert. "I always dreamed of seeing life in other dimensions."

"There is a lot out there," said Murmur. "Even I don't know what lies in the depths of the universe."

"It's so cool!" said Hilbert. "You'll love my world. Just remember to be careful."

"Agreed," said Murmur.

Suddenly, Hilbert and Murmur felt being sucked into a wormhole.

"Brace yourself!" said Murmur.

Hilbert and Murmur were sucked into a wormhole. They found themselves in a vast desert of wet, orange sand. The sky was a bright yellow. In the horizon were mountains, far taller than any on Earth.

"Where are we?" asked Hilbert.

"We're in a very dangerous world," said Murmur. "This is a land of Pokemon the size of mountains."

Hilbert looked into the distance. He sighted a Pokemon of a monstrous size. It looked like a cross between a dragon, a terror bird, a bull, a boar, a hyena, and a jinn. It had nine eyes on its horrid avian face. There were several others of its kind, both mature and juvenile. Even the young ones were bigger than Wailord.

One of the Pokemon's monstrous red eyes laid sight on Hilbert and Murmur.

Murmur felt nervous. Hilbert screamed.

"We better get out of here!" said Hilbert.

The giant Pokemon screamed a horrid, earth-shaking scream and began to stomp towards Hilbert. Murmur quickly ran with Hilbert in his arms, dodging the lasers shooting from the monstrous Pokemon's beak.

"Hurry, it's getting closer!" said Hilbert.

Murmur ran through the desert, looking for a cave. He made sure Hilbert would not fall from his grasp.

Murmur dashed towards a narrow canyon and ran through. It was too small for even a juvenile of this giant Pokemon to get through. The giant Pokemon could not get Hilbert and Murmur, and it stomped away.

"Phew!" said Murmur. "That was close!"

"I know," said Hilbert. "I feel like my heart stopped beating."

"You look weak," said Murmur. "Let's look for a wormhole."

The canyon led to a labyrinthine cave, which Murmur traversed. After three hours of traveling, he reached a mysterious room. It had a mysterious block puzzle, as well as some ruined tools. It looked like someone else had been there.

"Looks like I'll have to rearrange those blocks," said Murmur. "I'll lay you here." He lay Hilbert on an altar.

It took quite some time to get the blocks into the right points, since they were very heavy. Murmur spent three hours of trial and error. Finally, he managed to open a portal.

"A portal!" said Hilbert weakly.

"Don't worry, Hilbert!" said Murmur. "I've got you! Let's go!"

The portal began to speak. It had a voice that sounded both male and female at once.

"Where do you want me to take you?" it asked.

"To Earth!" said Murmur.

"Very well," said the portal.

Murmur picked up Hilbert and jumped with him into the portal.

* * *

In the meantime, Hilbert's co-workers at the Aether Foundation, as well as Hilda, were searching for him everywhere.

"Any sign of him?" asked Hilda.

"Me and Kiana checked Lush Jungle twice," said Ricardo.

"We failed to find any sign of Hilbert," said Kiana.

"I checked Wela Volcano Park," said Allison.

"I checked Memorial Hill," said Emil. "It was scary at night. Luckily Wicke was there to help."

"I'm glad to help," said Wicke. "I'm frightened, though. Lusamine is still trying to get the Ultra Wormhole to open. She asked Faba to check the resort, but after an hour, he stopped looking and decided to get some mocha lattes."

"I don't trust that Faba," said Ricardo.

"He doesn't like us," said Emil.

"There's no time for small talk!" said Cesar. "Hilbert's missing!"

"We better not let our guard down," said Hilda. "I called Nanu, and he's gotten his pal Looker to investigate it. They already searched Melemele Island. Looker's going to check Ula'ula Island, and Nanu will check Poni Island."

While Murmur was flying through space, he held on tight to Hilbert. He knew that this was going to get to Earth. Still, it was taking a very long time.

"I will get there soon!" he said. "I'm just glad I don't have to sleep!"

He looked at Hilbert. He saw that Hilbert had not spoken in a while. He was breathing, but unconscious.

After hours and hours and hours of flying, Murmur saw the light at the end of the tunnel. It looked like Earth. Murmur drew closer and closer to the portal, trying to get through. He clutched Hilbert and pressed forward, launching himself in the portal.

At last, Hilbert was on Earth again. He was still unconscious. He was in Poni Plains, lying under a tree. Murmur stayed with Hilbert. As the shadows started to grow long, heard footsteps. Murmur sensed that people who knew Hilbert were coming. Murmur hid behind some rocks.

The footsteps turned out to be Nanu and Hilda.

"Hilbert!" said Hilda, running up to Hilbert. "I was so worried!" She gave Hilbert a hug. "He's unconscious, but still breathing."

"I'll notify Wicke," said Nanu. "We'll need to help get Hilbert back to the Aether Foundation building on Akala Island."

"I'll stay with Hilbert until he wakes up," said Hilda. "Don't worry, cuz! We're here for you!"


	26. Hilbert the Faller

**CHAPTER 26: HILBERT THE FALLER**

Cut to that evening. Hilbert is lying down in bed. He is wearing nothing but a black T-shirt and a pair of blue boxers with a pumpkin print. The bed sheets are covering him. Hilda, Wicke, and Nanu were in the room. Hilbert began to stir.

"He's waking up..." said Hilda.

In a moment, Hilbert woke up. His eyes opened slowly. Hilda held Hilbert's hand and looked at him.

"H-Hilda..." said Hilbert faintly.

"Don't worry," said Hilda. "You're safe now."

"Where am I?" asked Hilbert. "What happened? One minute I was exploring the mountains and I had a dream about falling through space and exploring new worlds. Did I fall off a mountain or something?"

"No," said Nanu.

"Hilbert..." said Wicke, "something even worse happened. This might be hard for this to believe, but you were sucked into a wormhole and went missing for three days."

"You mean..." said Hilbert.

"I'm sorry, Hilbert," said Wicke, "but you're not dreaming. You really fell through the Ultra Wormhole."

"WHAT?" gasped Hilbert. "It wasn't a dream?"

"No, it wasn't," said Hilda.

"You're a Faller now," said Nanu. "You might want to be careful in remote areas since Ultra Beasts are attracted to Fallers." This made Hilbert suddenly remember Murmur, the Blacephalon who was so kind to him.

"Oh..." said Hilbert. "I'll keep that in mind."

Ricardo and Emil came in.

"Ah," said Ricardo, "nice to see that my man Hilbert is safe and sound!"

"I brought Hilbert a present!" said Emil. He had a box in his hands. "Chocolate-covered marshmallows for Hilbert!"

"Thanks," said Hilbert. Emil put the box on the desk on the other side of the room.

"That's for later," said Ricardo. "Allison's downstairs making some sesame chicken with rice and vegetables. I know how much you like sesame chicken. There's plenty of soda in your little fridge for you to drink."

"Should I get dressed?" asked Hilbert.

"I think Hilbert should stay up here for the night," said Nanu. "He needs his rest."

"We'll bring your dinner upstairs," said Ricardo. "It should be ready in a few minutes."

"Na razie, Hilbert!" said Emil.

Ricardo and Emil went downstairs.

"That's 'see you later' in Polish," said Hilda. "Emil told me."

"Oh," said Nanu. He cleared his throat. "It looks like Hilbert's memories aren't too lost. I've seen worse." He looked at Hilbert. "I talked to your parents and your girlfriend Bianca on Skype and told them that you're safe. I can't tell you how worried they were about you."

"Does Lusamine know I'm safe?" Hilbert asked Wicke.

"Of course she does!" said Wicke, smiling. "She texted me earlier. Faba did too."

"What about Sebastian?" asked Hilbert.

"He's been keeping a low profile," said Nanu. "He did jack squat when you disappeared. I don't trust him. He's such a tool."

Hilbert laughed.

"Just be glad you weren't there that night we saw _Kingschap: The Golden Pentagram_ ," said Hilbert.

Nanu burst out laughing.

"Glad I wasn't," said Nanu. "I saw it with my nephew Manu. Both of us couldn't stop laughing at how shitty it was. It was even worse than the first Kingschap movie, and a third one's in the works. Whenever that one comes out, I'm not going to be seeing it."

"Sorry to interrupt," said Wicke, "but I have to go back to Aether Paradise now. I'll see you tomorrow afternoon. I'm so glad to see you safe and sound, Hilbert!" She gave Hilbert a nice, warm hug. "Bye!"

Wicke walked out of the room and left the building.

Not much later, Ricardo and Emil came up with Hilbert's dinner. They placed it on a tray for Hilbert to eat.

"Here's your dinner," said Ricardo.

"Bon appetit, Hilbert!" said Emil.

Hilda went to get a grape soda out of Hilbert's fridge and put it on Hilbert's tray. She also gave him a plastic fork and knife.

"Thank you," said Hilbert. "I see you added a pair of pork buns."

"They look like a pair of boobies," said Emil.

Nanu burst out laughing again. So did everyone else.

Hilbert began to eat.

"You're going to like what we have planned for tomorrow," said Hilda. "We're going to be going to Pua's Pizza Palace."

"Mmm!" said Hilbert. "I'm sure being spoiled."

After Hilbert was done with his dinner, Ricardo and Emil bade Hilbert farewell. Hilda cleaned up for Hilbert. Hilda and Nanu stayed with Hilbert for about an hour longer before telling Hilbert that they had to leave.

"I need to go back to the base," said Hilda, "and Nanu has to go home. Right now, it's getting late, and I think you should get some rest. Tomorrow I'll come see you again."

"See you soon, Hilbert!" said Nanu.

Nanu left the room first, and then Hilda. Hilda turned the lights before leaving.

That night, Hilbert lay down in bed. He looked up at the revolving ceiling fan. He kept thinking about the Ultra Wormhole, his time on Luminus, and his meeting with Murmur. He knew that Murmur would come back, but for now, he was content with being treated kindly by people who cared about him. He couldn't ask for better friends.


	27. Pizza For Four

**CHAPTER 27: PIZZA FOR FOUR**

The next day, Hilbert was able to get out of bed. He still felt really awkward, but he thought that if he didn't think about his Ultra Space travels too much, they'd go away. That morning, Wicke greeted him.

"Good morning to you, Hilbert," said Wicke. "Did you sleep well?"

"I most certainly did," said Hilbert, smiling.

"I'm glad to hear," said Wicke.

"So," said Hilbert, "anything on the agenda for today?"

"There's no work for you at the moment," said Wicke, sighing. "Sorry. On the plus side, you are going to be going to Pua's Pizza Palace tonight. You've even got a visitor who's been expecting you. It's a surprise."

Hilbert sighed.

"It's not Sebastian, is it?" asked Hilbert.

"No, of course not," said Wicke. "You'll meet him tonight. He'll be coming with you to Pua's Pizza Palace."

"Sounds...exciting," said Hilbert.

That afternoon, Hilbert got ready for Pua's Pizza Palace. He put on a blue and purple striped shirt and mint green cargo shorts. He carefully shaved to present a clean-shaven face. He put on his flip-flops, put his MP3 player in his pocket, and went downstairs. He saw Hilda waiting for him. She was wearing a pink sundress with an orange hibiscus pattern and a colorful lei.

"Where's my guest?" asked Hilbert.

"He's going to be here soon," said Hilda. "Wicke promised to pick him up at the Tide Song Hotel. He's running a little late."

"I kinda was too," said Hilbert. "I wanted to make sure I shaved carefully."

Hilbert sat down in the lobby and relaxed. Eight minutes later, Hilbert heard the doors open. It was Wicke. She brought her guest with her.

"Hilbert!" said Wicke. "Your visitor is here!"

"I wonder who my visitor is," said Hilbert. He got up and looked around. "Colress!"

It was indeed Colress. He was wearing a blue and black sweater vest over a pale yellow polo shirt and black capris. He smiled and looked at Hilbert.

"Hilbert!" he said. He shook Hilbert's hand. "I've heard all about your little incident. I was in the neighborhood, and I was quite worried about what happened."

"Don't worry," said Hilbert. "It was nothing. How are Nate and Rosa?"

Colress smiled.

"They're doing fine," said Colress. "Nate called me this morning - this afternoon in Unova - and he and Rosa wanted me to know if you were safe."

"I'm glad to hear," said Hilbert. "Hilda talked to my parents and grandparents last night and told them I'm safe."

"The more, the merrier," said Colress. "Well...it's getting late. We don't want to miss our dinner at Pua's Pizza Palace."

Hilbert, Hilda, and Colress went outside and got into Wicke's car, a white Toyota Highlander hybrid that she customized. The car was decorated with pink carnations, and on the sides and back Wicke's name was written in pink girly letters. Wicke sat in the driver's seat, Hilda sat next to her, and Hilbert and Colress sat in the back.

"I like your car," said Hilbert. "Where did you get all the decorations?"

"Well," said Wicke, "my little brother customizes cars for a living. He helped me do it. He even put in the heart-shaped steering wheel."

"I like the floral print seats," said Hilbert. "They're so soft."

"I like the pink fuzzy dice," said Colress.

"I've always loved fuzzy dice," said Wicke. "Lusamine doesn't like them - she thinks they're tacky. I got some for Molayne., and he doesn't even have a car."

"I've heard a lot about Molayne," said Hilbert. "He seems like a really nice guy. He's that forty-something blond guy who runs the observatory, right?"

Wicke laughed. She started up her car and began to drive.

"Molayne's only in his mid-twenties," said Wicke. "He's much younger than I am. He just looks older. He may not be the most attractive guy around, but he's really sweet. His cousin's son Sophocles helps him out. Sophocles is surprisingly intelligent for his age."

"Lusamine looks very good for her age," said Colress. "Can you believe she's over 40?"

Hilbert and Hilda laughed.

When the group arrived at Pua's Pizza Palace, they were amazed at how big it was.

"Pua's Pizza Palace is awesome!" said Hilda. "They have a few in Unova, but the ones in Alola are the biggest and the best!"

Hilbert, who was standing behind a Salazzle animatronic, looked around.

"Not to mention the coolest animatronics!" he said.

Suddenly, the Salazzle animatronic started talking.

"HEY! WHO ORDERED THE PU PU PLATTER?"

Colress giggled.

"I know," he said. "They're really talkative too."

"I'll get us a table," said Wicke. She led Hilbert, Hilda, and Colress to a table that gave a great view of the stage - and the play area with its ball pit and cavernous tunnels.

Colress looked at the tunnels.

"I remember climbing up the tunnels at one of these places when I was little," said Colress. "I remember getting to the top and looking down and screaming. I was so scared that my father actually had to climb up and get me down."

"Yeesh!" said Hilbert.

"Things were different back then," said Colress. "When I was a kid, those play areas were pretty unsafe. I always heard stories about kids being killed on them."

"I remember," said Wicke.

"I was always afraid of the guy in the Pua costume," said Hilbert. "When I was little, he tried to give me a hug and I screamed."

Colress giggled again.

"So," said Colress, "what do you want for dinner?"

"God," said Hilbert, "there's so many different pizzas, I have trouble picking one!"

Hilda was looking at the menu too.

"A lot of these pizzas look...disgusting," said Hilda. "I mean, these are some of the weirdest toppings. I mean, look what's on here - pineapples, coconut, bananas, peanut butter, marshmallows, lettuce, carrots, French fries, macaroni and cheese, BUBBLEGUM?"

"I know, right?" said Hilbert. "Pizza's supposed to be Italian. I've had real Italian pizza and they don't eat any of those toppings."

"And people think it's weird that me and Hilbert like broccoli on pizza," said Hilda.

"I've had my fair share of weird pizzas," said Colress. "I remember having one with a rice crust. It was pretty good."

Wicke looked at the menu.

"We should get a pu pu platter first," said Wicke. "While we eat it, we could think about what we want."

Wicke ordered a pu pu platter for the group. Wicke and Hilda ordered iced tea to drink, Colress ordered a pineapple soda, and Hilbert ordered a grape soda. When they got their pu pu platter, they came to a decision on their pizza.

"Let's see..." said Wicke. "We'll take the pizza with tomatoes, extra cheese, red peppers, broccoli, and buffalo chicken."

"Sounds good to me," said Hilbert. He turned to Colress. "So, Colress, how do you like Alola?"

"It's wonderful," said Colress. "I might stay a while. I'm not part of the Aether Foundation, but I've assisted them when they needed help. I'm still researching the true power of Pokemon, but I've been doing it more effectively - I think the bond between a Pokemon and its Trainer is the source of it. I have no desire to harm any Pokemon or get involved in any of the nonsense that Ghetsis wanted me to do when I was part of Team Plasma. I've kept in touch with N as well."

"N?" said Hilda. "I forgot to tell you this sooner, but N and I got engaged."

"I've heard," said Colress. "I'm excited about it too!"

"We got engaged not long before I left for Alola," said Hilda. "We plan on getting married next year."

"I'm looking forward to the wedding," said Hilbert. "I'm going to be N's best man, Bianca's going to be Hilda's maid of honor, Cheren, Nate, and Hugh are going to be groomsmen, and Rosa, Concordia, and Anthea are going to be bridesmaids."

"I love weddings!" said Colress. "I was married once myself."

"I didn't know you used to be married," said Hilda.

Colress sighed.

"My marriage isn't something I open up about a lot," he said. "I was only eighteen at the time, and my wife Kari was nineteen. We ended up getting divorced after four years together. Kari's gotten remarried, but I haven't. I decided to devote myself to science instead."

"Maybe you'll find another special someone someday," said Wicke.

Colress blushed.

"Do you keep in touch with Kari?" asked Hilda.

"I do," said Colress, "but not too often. Kari and her husband have three little boys to care for, and now she's pregnant again. She's excited that she's finally having a girl after three boys. Kari still calls me by my real name rather than Colress. I'm not really named Colress. My real name is Anthony, but I've gone by Colress for years."

"Where did you get Colress?" asked Wicke.

"I just thought it sounded cool," said Colress. "I've never actually legally changed it to Colress, but almost everyone I know calls me Colress."

"Colress suits you a lot better than Anthony," said Hilbert. "You don't look like an Anthony. You look like a Colress."

Everyone laughed.

"Look," said Hilda, "our pizza's here! And the band's starting to play,"

The group got their pizza.

"Mmm...smells good!" said Colress.

Meanwhile, on the stage, the curtains opened to reveal the animatronics. There was Pua the Alolan Rattata, Billy Bob the Bewear, Orval the Oranguru, Mindy the Pom-Pom Style Oricorio, Kanani the Ribombee, and Larry the Midnight Lycanroc.

"Hello, ladies and Germans!" said Pua. "It's me, Pua! It's time for our show. Let's start you off with _Alola 'Oe_ , our state song!"

The animatronics started to play _Alola 'Oe_.

"This pizza is delicious!" said Hilbert. He raised his glass. "A toast to friends!"

Hilbert, Hilda, Wicke, and Colress all raised their glasses, and then dug into their pizza.


	28. Wanderlust

**CHAPTER 28: WANDERLUST**

Hilbert was told repeatedly to be careful and to stay away from remote places. This was better said than done, for Hilbert possessed a strong curiosity. Nanu told Hilda to keep an eye out for Hilbert.

One night, a few nights after his meetng with Colress, Hilbert decided to take a walk around Heahea City. He sneaked out of the Aether Foundation building while the other workers were distracted.

Hilbert looked at his clothes - a light blue suit with a black shirt and blue loafers.

"I'm certainly dressed for a night on the town," he said. "I hear they're having a light show at Heahea Beach tonight."

As Hilbert walked along the brightly-lit streets of Heahea City, he listened around. He passed by a juice bar called Coco-Piña. The jukebox in the bar was playing an old 50s song called "Mr. Sandman". Hilbert went inside.

"The atmosphere is so nice," said Hilbert.

Hilbert went to the counter. A tan-skinned woman with fuchsia hair in a messy pixie cut and a pierced lower lip looked at him.

"Welcome to Coco-Piña, _senor_ ," she said. "My name is Maribel. What can I get you?"

"What do you recommend?" asked Hilbert.

"We have lots of different drinks," said Maribel.

Hilbert looked at the menu.

"I think I'll take a pineapple-guava-passion fruit blend," said Hilbert. "Does it come with one of those little umbrellas?"

"Of course it does," said Maribel. "No drink would be complete without it."

Maribel went to prepare Hilbert's drink.

"I always wondered why they call it passion fruit," said a woman sitting nearby.

"According to my research," said Hilbert, "the passion fruit got its name because they believed the passion flower contained symbols referring to the passion of Jesus Christ. Of course, my girlfriend always said she thought it was called so because it made you passionate after eating it."

The people at the juice bar laughed.

Hilbert got his drink and began to drink it. While Hilbert was drinking, he noticed that the jukebox was now playing "On the Floor" by Jennifer Lopez, and there was a pair of Alolan Raichu on one of the tables, gyrating their hips and shaking their tails to the music. Hilbert couldn't help but laugh.

When Hilbert was done with his drink, he continued walking around Heahea City. He decided to check out a gift shop near the beach. The store was full of anime merchandise. The song "Fruits Candy" from Cardcaptor Sakura was playing.

"I love how anime merchandise is so easy to come by here," said Hilbert. "Unfortunately, I don't have enough money." He looked around. "A body pillow of Hatsune Miku? Only a neckbeard would buy that."

Hilbert looked at the various anime merchandise - he saw singing Hatsune Miku dolls, which he pressed to make them all sing in high-pitched voices. Some of the people in the store looked at Hilbert, who paid no heed to them.

There was also a shitload of Hello Kitty merchandise, including some that was clearly not intended for Hello Kitty's target audience. Near them were a bunch of cheap doujinshi comics written by weeaboos. Hilbert spent nearly ten minutes reading them. He especially liked reading one called "Cinderella Nekojin", which was about a nekojin named Shinderera-chan who dreamed of being a princess.

After Hilbert got bored with the comics, he decided to leave the store and take a stroll away from the city and toward Route 4. He got away from the hustle and bustle of the city and enjoyed the shade of the trees.

Not long after, he heard the sound of firecrackers. He stayed still for about a minute, and then looked around.

Suddenly, a Blacephalon came out from behind the tree.

"Murmur, is that you?" said Hilbert.

"Indeed it is I," said Murmur.

"How did you get here from Poni Island?" asked Hilbert. "You're a Fire-type, aren't you?"

"That is right," said Murmur. "I was able to hitch a ride on a Lapras so I could get across."

"Oh..." said Hilbert. "What brings you here?"

"I've been looking for you," said Murmur.

"Do you need me for something?" asked Hilbert.

"No," said Murmur, "but I'm here to protect you, as I promised."

Hilbert was stunned.

"Did you sense the presence of any Ultra Beasts besides you?" asked Hilbert.

"Not tonight," said Murmur, "but I have learned about what your world calls Fallers - people who have fallen through the Ultra Wormhole."

"They told me about Fallers," said Hilbert. "Apparently, since I'm a Faller, that means that Ultra Beasts are attracted to me. Nanu told me that Ultra Beasts often think that Fallers will be able to signal their way to the beasts' home dimensions."

"Nanu?" asked Murmur. "Is he that older man with the big hairy eyebrows and red eyes?"

"That's him!" said Hilbert. "He's actually pretty nice. Not the friendliest person around, but he is nice. Still, you might want to be careful around him. Nanu is a member of the International Police, and you Ultra Beasts are like wanted criminals here."

"I see," said Murmur. "The tapus are also around, and Ultra Beasts have been at war with them for countless millennia."

"This island is where Tapu Lele dwells," said Hilbert.

"Tapu Lele is a cruel being," said Murmur. "She uses her scales to destroy others and feels no remorse for the suffering and pain she causes."

"Nanu did say that the tapus are fickle," said Hilbert. "He says that they do help people, but calling them heroic is definitely inaccurate because they can be quite self-serving as well."

"Don't worry about a thing," said Murmur. "I will keep an eye out for you and help you when you need it."

"What about the tapus?" asked Hilbert. "They're a lot stronger than you are."

"I think I can stand my guard," said Murmur. He looked at Hilbert. "You look tired. I think you should go get some rest."

"You're right," said Hilbert. "I'm going back to the Aether Foundation building."

"Fine by me," said Murmur. "Goodbye!"

"Goodbye!" said Hilbert, who took leave of Murmur. Once Hilbert was out of Murmur's sight, Murmur disappeared.

Hilbert got back to the Aether Foundation building just before it got too dark to see. Surprisingly, no one had noticed that he was gone. Hilbert went up to his room and gazed at the stars outside his window until he was too tired to, and then got ready for bed.


	29. Mark of the Beast

**CHAPTER 29: MARK OF THE BEAST**

Things seemed to be going fine. But a few days later, things were about to go crashing down for Hilbert.

Hilbert and Hilda were taking a walk along Route 6. Hilda wanted to keep Hilbert out of trouble, and she thought if she stayed close to him, then things would be going well.

"So I watched Cobra Kai last night," said Hilbert, "and man, it was funny!"

"I know," said Hilda. "That Billy Zabka can sure tell a good story with his performances and drunkenness."

"He kinda reminds me of Faba," said Hilbert. "Faba's such a bum - always drinking and eating pizza and never helping out anyone. And Faba's blond too, which makes it even funnier." Hilbert's co-workers had told him of Faba's stupidity.

"BANZAI!" said Hilbert and Hilda, laughing afterward.

Hilbert looked around. He was wondering if any Ultra Beasts would be able to find him.

"I do hope there's no Ultra Beasts around here," said Hilbert. "It would be a nightmare if one of them came here."

"I don't think so," said Hilda, "but be careful."

Hilbert and Hilda continued to walk for about half an hour. Then he heard the sounds of squirming.

"What was that?" asked Hilbert.

Hilbert and Hilda looked around, and shrugged it off. As they walked further, they heard squirming again.

"I don't know..." said Hilbert.

The squirming was heard a third time, as well as giggling.

"Let's get out of here," said Hilbert.

"Now!" said Hilda.

Hilbert and Hilda began to run back to the park entrance, but before they could make it, a quartet of Nihilego appeared. The jellyfish Ultra Beasts started looking at Hilbert and giggling.

"What do you want from me?" asked Hilbert.

The Nihilego made threatening gestures towards Hilbert. Hilbert tried backing away, but the Nihilego had him surrounded. He knew that he was screwed. The Nihilego started descending upon Hilbert. They began to feed on his energy, causing him to scream in pain.

"HILDA!" yelled Hilbert. "HELP ME!"

"I'm on it!" said Hilda. "Go, Krookodile!" Hilda sent out Krookodile.

Hilda's Krookodile looked at and shot an angry look at them. The Nihilego started to shoot toxins at Krookodile, but Krookodile dodged them.

"Krookodile, use Earthquake!" said Hilda.

Krookodile stomped its feet and began to shake the ground, rising pieces of earth to attack the Nihilego. Three of them fainted. Now only one Nihilego was left. The remaining Nihilego used Mirror Coat, which tried to hit Krookodile, but its Dark type made it not take any damage. Hilda ordered Krookodile to use Earthquake again. This one caused the last Nihilego to faint.

Finally, Hilbert was freed from the Nihilego. He woke up and looked at Hilda.

"Hilbert!" said Hilda. "Are you okay, Hilbert?"

Hilbert groaned in pain.

"We need to get you back to the base," said Hilda.

Hilda called for help. A few Aether Foundation employees took Hilbert and helped him into Hilda's Jeep. Hilda then drove away. Unfortunately, things were about to go from bad to worse, as Lusamine had seen the whole thing on surveillance cameras.

"You're in for it now, Hilbert!"

When Hilda arrived back at the base, she was informed that Hilbert was to be brought to Aether Paradise for reasons unbeknownst to her. Hilbert was way out of it, but Hilda had no choice but to bring him over.

Hilda rode on her Braviary to Aether Paradise, while she had Hilbert carried on his Mandibuzz. Afterwards, Hilda escorted Hilbert inside. There Lusamine was standing. She had a pissed-off, sociopathic look on her face.

"Y-you want to see me, Lusamine?" asked Hilbert.

"Come with me," said Lusamine. "Hilda, off with you. You may have Hilbert back once we are done."

"Gulp," said Hilbert. He looked at Hilda. "See you later, Hilda."

"Don't worry, Hilbert," said Lusamine. "We'll get this sorted out." As Lusamine and Hilbert walked, Hilbert noted that Lusamine was laughing. This laugh seemed happy, but in an arrogant and cruel way. He knew something was up.

Eventually, Lusamine brought Hilbert to one of the laboratories in the basement. She set Hilbert in a chair and looked at him.

"Greetings, Hilbert," said Lusamine.

"Why did you want me here?" said Hilbert.

"Why?" asked Lusamine. "You of all people should know why are you here! You were the one who experienced it!"

"I don't know what you are talking about," said Hilbert.

"Don't lie to me, Hilbert," said Lusamine. "If there's one thing I don't like, it's a liar."

"I'm not lying!" said Hilbert. "I just have no idea what you are talking about, Miss Lusamine. I promise, if you want something for me to do, I'll do if for you. You can count on me, boss."

Lusamine glared at Hilbert.

"That's all good and well, Hilbert," said Lusamine, "but your flattery won't work on me. You can't get away with playing tricks on me."

"I really don't know what you're talking about," said Hilbert.

Lusamine sighed.

"Listen here, Hilbert," said Lusamine. "The subject of this discussion is Ultra Beasts. This morning, four Ultra Beasts were sighted in Wela Volcano Park. They were all individuals of UB-01 Symbiont. Is it true that you were at Wela Volcano Park today?"

"Yes I was," said Hilbert.

Lusamine froze for a second.

"Interesting..." she said. She looked in her documents and took out a picture of Nihilego. "Take a good look at this Pokemon. Is it true that, on the day of your visit to Wela Volcano Park, you encountered a beast that looks like this?"

"Yes," said Hilbert.

"How many?" asked Lusamine.

"Four," said Hilbert.

"Did they interact with you?" asked Lusamine.

"Yes," said Hilbert.

"Was it a positive or negative interaction?" asked Lusamine.

"Quite negative," said Hilbert. "They attacked me. My head still hurts from the toxins. Now if you excuse me, I need to get out of here soon."

Hilbert tried getting up and walking away, but he saw that Lusamine had locked the door, preventing his escape.

"Going somewhere?" said Lusamine. "I'm not finished with you."

"Please," said Hilbert, "I don't like being asked question after question."

"Tough!" said Lusamine. "I'm the boss of this place, and if I say that I still need you, than so be it! Sit down."

Hilbert sat back down.

"Now then," said Lusamine, "we know that you are a Faller, and the Ultra Beasts are attracted to Fallers. I am going to take you to a special room."

Hilbert didn't like the sound of this.

Lusamine led Hilbert to a room in the lower depths of the laboratories. In this room, there was a huge machine that looked like an MRI scan machine. Hilbert did not like the look of this, especially because the room was poorly lit and Lusamine had a smirk on her face.

"Please," said Lusamine, "lay down on the machine. I'll put you to sleep."

Hilbert wanted to say no, but he didn't want to make Lusamine angry, so he lay down on the bed of the machine. Lusamine then used toxins to put Hilbert to sleep. Once Hilbert was asleep, Lusamine began to extract energy from him. She laughed wickedly as she extracted Hilbert's energy. When she was finished, she ordered one of her scientists to rush Hilbert to the infirmary.

When Hilbert woke up, he saw that Lusamine was gone. Instead, Hilda was there. Hilbert didn't know what happened, and he didn't remember anything either.

"I'm...tired..." said Hilbert. "What...happened?"

"Lusamine extracted energy from you," said Hilda. "In case you're wondering how I know, the nurse told me."

"Ugh..." said Hilbert.

"I'll take you back," said Hilda.

Hilda took Hilbert back to the Aether Foundation building in Heahea City. There she let him rest.

"I don't know what's going on," said Hilbert. "Why would Lusamine do that to me? I trusted her!"

"I did too," said Hilda. "I think something's up with her. I think she might be trying to use your energy for the Ultra Wormhole."

"Do you think we should investigate?" asked Hilbert.

"We could," said Hilda. "But then you might be fired. I'd rather not risk it, but I will inform Nanu. Now just get some rest. Goodnight, Hilbert!"

"Goodnight, Hilda!" said Hilbert.

Hilda left.

That night, Hilbert lay in bed, visibly stressed out due to his dreadful experience with Lusamine. Things were now getting out of hand. But that is just the beginning...


	30. A Visit From Friends

**CHAPTER 30: A VISIT FROM FRIENDS**

The next day, Hilbert felt too stressed out. His experience with Lusamine made him unwilling to go back to work - at least for a day.

"Hi, Wicke," said Hilbert.

"Hello, Hilbert!" said Wicke.

"I have something to tell you," said Hilbert. "I will not be working today since I don't feel too well. I think I need a break from work. I hope you understand."

"I understand, Hilbert," said Wicke. "Hope you feel better soon!"

Hilbert hung up and went back to bed. Even though it was hot out, Hilbert would rather stay inside. Lucky for him, the air conditioner was on, so he didn't have to open any windows. He couldn't stop thinking about Lusamine. He trusted her and thought she was looking out for him. It felt so painful that Hilbert was wrong about the woman whom he thought was so great.

"So it's all a lie..." said Hilbert, "Lusamine doesn't care about me..."

Meanwhile, back at Aether Paradise, Hilbert's co-workers were talking about him.

"I'm worried about Hilbert," said Ricardo.

"I am too," said Emil.

"Lusamine is pretty worried about Hilbert," said Allison.

Kiana huffed.

"Worried?" she said. "I beg to differ."

"What do you mean?" asked Emil.

"I'm beginning to think that Lusamine is the reason why Hilbert doesn't want to go to work," said Kiana. "Lusamine took Hilbert down to the laboratories. I saw him in the infirmary, and he looked terrified. I think he's too scared to go back to work."

"I think I'd have to agree with Kiana," said Ricardo.

Allison sighed.

"I guess you're right..." she said.

"Is Hilbert going to be okay?" asked Emil.

"I don't know," said Ricardo. "I think we should pay him a visit after our shift is over."

"Sounds good to me..." said Kiana.

That afternoon, Hilbert's co-workers decided to pay him a visit. When they arrived at the building, they met up with Cesar.

"Hilbert's a bit nervous," said Cesar. "Unfortunately, Hilda's busy at work today, but she's going to see him tonight. I'm making some Tapu Cocoa for Hilbert to drink. I put it in the fridge an hour ago since Hilbert likes his cocoa cold."

"Okay," said Ricardo. "Can we see Hilbert?"

"Sure," said Cesar. "He's upstairs."

Ricardo, Emil, Allison, and Kiana went upstairs to Hilbert's room. Ricardo opened the door to see a dazed and confused Hilbert. He was lying down on his bed, half asleep.

"Hello, Hilbert," said Emil.

Hilbert looked at Emil.

"Y-yes?" said Hilbert. His voice felt very faint.

"We're here because we wanted to make sure you were okay," said Ricardo.

"I'm...fine..." said Hilbert.

"We heard about what happened with Lusamine," said Kiana. "How could she use you like that?"

"I don't know..." said Hilbert.

"Mind if we stay a while?" said Allison.

"Make yourself at home," said Hilbert.

Ricardo walked over to Hilbert.

"Hilbert," he said, "I don't want you to worry.. I talked to Wicke, and she said you can take as much time off as you need."

"Thanks," said Hilbert. "But I don't know how Lusamine could be so cruel."

"Remember this," said Kiana. "People aren't always what they seem."

"But what am I going to do?" asked Hilbert.

"Just stick with us," said Ricardo. "We'll be your buddies."

Emil looked at the remote.

"Let's tune into some TV," he said. "Maybe we can put on the Discovery Channel, because we're nothing but mammals."

Everyone laughed.

Emil pressed some buttons. After a while, he saw a news story.

 _Attention, people of Alola! Next Friday and Saturday, at the bookstore in Heahea City, you'll get to meet Simon Graham Reuel Blanchflower. Simon, the cocky, crass, controversial comic cavalier, is going to dazzle us with his brilliant ideas, including ideas for the next Kingschap movie!_

"He's...so...funny!" said Emil.

Allison snatched the remote out of Emil's hand and turned the TV off.

"I think that's the last person Hilbert wants to see," said Allison.

"Last person next to Lusamine," said Ricardo.

"Sorry," said Emil.

Cesar came in with Hilbert's cocoa.

"Cocoa is ready!" he said, giving Hilbert his cocoa. "By the way, I just received a 'get well soon' card from Tom. Hope you like it!" Cesar handed Hilbert the card. It had a picture of a Phanpy riding on a unicycle.

"That's sweet," said Hilbert.

Hilbert began to drink his cocoa.

"I'm so glad to have friends like you," said Hilbert. "I don't know what I'd do without you."


	31. Hilbert and the Mole

**CHAPTER 31: HILBERT AND THE MOLE**

Cut to a few days later. Hilda is talking to Nanu on Route 16.

"Hilbert really hasn't been getting out much," said Hilda.

"I'm not surprised," said Nanu. "Hilbert's too scared to go out. It's because of what Lusamine did to him. To be honest, I never trusted that Lusamine woman. I always thought she was hiding something from the world."

"I'm beginning to have doubts about Lusamine too," said Hilda. "Hilbert's co-worker Ricardo told me that Lusamine just dismisses people whenever they try to bring up Hilbert. It's like she doesn't care about him."

"I hope Lusamine doesn't fire him," said Nanu. "It would break Hilbert's heart to be fired."

"There must be something I can do..." said Hilda.

"Why not talk to Molayne?" asked Nanu. "Molayne is very understanding of people's problems. He's really nice. If you ask me, he's a little _too_ nice, but he's someone you can count on. You also told me Hilbert has Asperger's syndrome. Molayne has Asperger's too, so he can relate."

"He's at the Hokulani Observatory, right?" said Hilda.

"Yep," said Nanu, "but he takes a lot of time off. His cousin Sophocles is there most of the time. If you want to get a hold of Molayne, just call the observatory's number. Molayne often answers the phone himself."

"Great!" said Hilda. "I'll call him right away."

Nanu gave Hilda the observatory's phone number. There was a field trip going on at the observatory, but Sophocles was guiding everyone. Molayne agreed to meet Hilbert. Hilda then told Hilbert about the whole ordeal.

That afternoon, Hilda took Hilbert to the Hokulani Observatory. When they got there, they were told that Molayne had gone home for the day. Hilda asked if they could take the Exeggutor Express bus to Molayne's house. The rider was hesitant to let them, but after Hilda told who she and Hilbert were, he agreed to take them to Molayne's house.

When the bus arrived at Molayne's house, Hilbert and Hilda got off and looked at Molayne's nice one-story house. It was built in the Alolan style and painted coconut. Out back was a circular swimming pool. The garden was full of colorful flowers. A big mango tree grew in the front yard, and there was a papaya tree and a guava tree in the backyard. Lawn ornaments around the house included plastic flamingos, a bathtub Mary over a small pool, a pagoda statue, and statues of Pokemon.

"Pretty impressive place," said Hilda. "I heard Molayne loves gardening."

Hilda went to the front door and rang the doorbell. After a minute, Molayne opened the door. Molayne was wearing short purple silk pajamas. When he saw Hilbert, he smiled.

"Hello there!" said Molayne. "You must be Hilbert and Hilda."

"Hi, Molayne," said Hilbert.

"Come on in," said Molayne. He let Hilbert and Hilda inside his house. "Do you want something to eat? If you want, you can stay for dinner."

"Sure," said Hilda.

"I hope you like Cajun cuisine," said Molayne, "because that's what's on the menu for tonight. I have a pot of jambalaya ready. Right now it's cooling off."

Molayne led Hilbert and Hilda to the kitchen and seated them at the table. He brought over the pot and spooned some jambalaya onto Hilbert and Hilda's plates, and then some onto his own plate. He then put the pot back on the stove. After that, he went to get some Diet Pepsi out of the fridge. Everyone began to eat.

"Thanks for the food," said Hilbert.

"Don't mention it," said Molayne. "What brings you here?"

"We're here to get advice," said Hilbert. He sighed. "I've had a bad experience at the Aether Foundation, and I'm very stressed out."

"Hilbert is a Faller," said Hilda, "and that's gotten Lusamine excited."

"Fallers?" said Molayne. "I've heard of Fallers. They're people who've fallen through a wormhole. I've heard people say that strange Pokemon are attracted to them."

"Wait..." said Hilbert, "how do you know about Fallers?"

"Nanu has told me about them," said Molayne. "I find all this talk about other dimensions very fascinating."

Hilbert sighed.

"Sorry..." said Molayne. "I think I can help you out, Hilbert. When I'm faced with a tough situation, I always try to keep close to people who care about me. For me, it's Sophocles, as well as my mom and dad. Unfortunately, I don't know much about wormholes and extradimensional Pokemon, so I can't offer too much advice."

"That sounds like good advice," said Hilda.

"I think it's also important to seek out help wherever you can," said Molayne. "If all else fails, call Nanu."

"You're right," said Hilbert. "That sounds pretty good to me." He looked at his plate. "Is it okay if we have seconds?"

"Sure," said Molayne.

After dinner was over, Molayne decided to sit outside on the veranda in the back of his house. He looked at the evening sky. Hilbert and Hilda sat with him.

"Thanks again for giving me advice," said Hilbert.

"No problem," said Molayne.

"It's such a beautiful evening," said Hilda.

"I know," said Molayne. "What I like about Alola is that it's always warm, and there's lots of sunshine."

"Do you have anything for dessert?" asked Hilbert.

"Maybe," said Molayne, "but then you'd be in the house by yourselves for a few hours. In half an hour, I've going to meet Professor Kukui at the YMCA. Kukui's teaching me how to play water polo. Pretty soon I've got to grab my helmet and speedos and meet him there. If you want, you could come with me."

"Nah," said Hilbert. "It's getting late."

"I'll take Hilbert back to the base so he can rest," said Hilda.

"Okay," said Molayne. "Have fun!"

Not long after, Hilbert and Hilda said goodbye to Molayne. Then they went back to the base. Once Hilbert was in his room by himself, he went to watch some TV. When he turned to the entertainment channel, he was hoping to get some news about trashy celebrities.

Unfortunately, another ad for Simon Blanchflower's visit to Alola was on. He had arrived in Alola earlier and was going to make his public appearance tomorrow.

"Great..." said Hilbert. "Just great. You're never going to see me attending that stupid thing." Hilbert than had a somewhat diabolical thought. "You know what? Maybe I will go. That way I could give Simon Blanchflower a fucking piece of my mind. That'll show him!"


	32. Simon Graham Reuel Blanchflower

**CHAPTER 32: SIMON GRAHAM REUEL BLANCHFLOWER**

At last the dreadful day came - the day that Hilbert was going to go to the bookstore to give Simon Blanchflower a piece of his mind. That afternoon, Hilbert decided to tell Hilda about his plan.

"Hilbert," she said, "I don't think it's such a good idea to get even."

"I don't think it will be such a bad thing," said Hilbert. "He needs to know that he can't get away with insulting this country."

"This isn't like you at all," said Hilda. "The Hilbert I know tries to avoid confrontations, not get himself into them."

By now, the toxins that Hilbert had received from Nihilego were kicking in.

"It's not a confrontation if it's for a just cause," he said. "Maybe you're just jealous!"

"I am not jealous, Hilbert!" said Hilda. "I'm just trying to protect you!"

"I can protect myself," said Hilbert. "I don't need you."

"Hilbert!" said Hilda. "I thought we were a team!"

"I don't need you right now," said Hilbert. "I have Ricardo, Kiana, and the other Aether Foundation employees to protect me."

Hilda sighed.

"Fine!" she said. "Don't bother expecting me to come help you." She left in a huff.

That night, Ricardo, Emil, Kiana, and Allison went to meet Hilbert. When Hilbert came downstairs to present himself, his friends looked at him in awe. Hilbert was wearing a red blazer with a purple ascot and red dress pants. On his feet were brown loafers.

"You look very sophisticated," said Allison. "Where did you get that outfit?"

"From the boutique," said Hilbert.

"Ready to meet Simon?" asked Emil.

"I'm not just ready," said Hilbert. "I'm ready Freddy."

"Where's Hilda?" asked Ricardo.

"She's not coming," said Hilbert. "She decided against coming. Now let's paint the town brown!"

As Hilbert and his friends got on the bus, Murmur stood behind a lamppost

"This is not good!" he said. "Not good at all!"

Meanwhile, at the bookstore, a large crowd stood outside. A limousine pulled up to the front. The door opened, and out came Simon Blanchflower and his wife Alexandra, who was nicknamed Binky. Simon was a tall, pasty-skinned man of forty, with parted brown hair, a soul patch, and glasses. He wore a blue suit with a red tie. Binky was a woman with long blonde hair and a pink cocktail dress with matching high heels and pillbox hat.

"Welcome to Alola, Simon!" said a reporter. "Alola!"

Simon huffed.

"Piss off, you trollop," he said. He and his wife walked into the bookstore with smug, stiff upper lips.

"Typical Americans," said Binky. "So low-class."

When Hilbert and his friends arrived at the bookstore, they saw the large crowd.

"Looks like a lot of people want to see Simon," said Allison.

"He's...wonderful!" said Emil.

"Let's get a move on," said Hilbert.

Hilbert went inside and made his way through the large crowd. When he reached Simon, he tried to get on his good side by smiling. Simon facepalmed.

"Great..." said Simon. "Another bloody fanboy." He shot an angry look at Hilbert. Hilbert shot one back at him.

"So it's you," said Hilbert. "Simon Graham Reuel Blanchflower, the creator of the _Kingschap_ franchise."

"What the fuck are you doing here, you muppet?" said Simon. "Back away from me...of course, since you're an American, I'm willing to bet that you have a bloody ridiculous American name to go with that disgusting long hair on your head."

Hilbert growled.

"My name is Hilbert," he said.

Simon laughed haughtily.

"Bollocks!" said Simon. "What kind of name is that? Must be some made-up American name. I'd never give any child of mine such a name. I wouldn't even allow them to play with such kids."

"Oh yeah?" asked Hilbert. "And what are your kids' names, you pretentious asswipe?"

"My children have fine upper-class names," said Simon. "My children are Digby Talbot Euripides, Tarka Mungo Percival Davenport, Hero Halcyon Atalanta, and Xanthippe Romilly Thelxiepeia Honeysuckle."

Hilbert burst out laughing.

"You actually named your kids those hideous names?" he said. "Maybe you've been reading too many history books."

"And maybe you've been reading too many of those so-called 'comics' that they call 'manga'," said Simon. "Japanese pop culture is so degenerate."

"Degenerate?" said Hilbert. "You're the one who makes shitty works of literature making fun of people from countries that aren't your own."

"And your point is?" said Simon.

" _Kingschap_ is fucking BULLSHIT!" shouted Hilbert.

Simon growled.

"Quit embarrassing me, you grotty little wanker!" said Simon.

"I don't care!" snapped Hilbert. "I'm just getting started. Your Kingschap movie offended me. I live in the part of this country that your movie took a dump all over. And by the way, I'm no redneck - I think I know a lot more than you."

"You wouldn't dare bet on it," said Simon.

"I will, and I have!" yelled Hilbert.

Hilbert and Simon spent the next ten minutes arguing about politics, national stereotypes, and Simon's books. Meanwhile, Hilda was running to the bookstore to make sure Hilbert was okay.

Ricardo, Emil, Kiana, and Allison all walked up to Hilbert and Simon.

"I think you've argued enough..." said Kiana.

"What about the book signings?" asked Emil.

Simon glared at Emil.

"And I suppose you'd want to infest my country with your Nazi-collaborating relatives, kielbasa breath!" snapped Simon.

"Simon!" said Emil. "That isn't funny."

"Oh," said Simon, "so you're dumb _and_ big-mouthed?"

"You leave him alone!" yelled Hilbert.

"Ha! Make me!" said Simon.

"Please, guys," said Ricardo.

"Don't tell me what to do, you fucking Yankee!" yelled Simon.

"I swear to God," said Hilbert, "this guy's nuts."

"News flash, idiot," said Simon. "God doesn't exist!"

"Oh," said Hilbert, "but Pepe the Frog does?"

"I don't have time for this, you muppet," said Simon. "Get the fuck out of my face."

Binky tried to step in.

"Now now," she said, "you better learn to keep your mouth shut, you wicked boy. My husband is a fine gentleman, unlike you, you dirty-faced peasant who is stupid enough to put himself on equal footing with aristocrats."

"You're an aristocrat?" asked Allison.

"Oh yes," said Simon. "I'm from a prestigious family. I am a descendant of the 1st Earl of Leicester through his first wife. Hilbert, on the other hand, is a descendant of a bunch of slimy peasants who were too busy drinking beer and eating potatoes to do anything worthwhile." Simon laughed haughtily again.

"You think you're so smart?" said Hilbert.

"I _am_ smart," said Simon. "After all, I'm a member of Mensa International. I'm sure your intelligence is on the bottom percentile." Simon and Binky laughed.

Hilbert screamed.

"THAT'S IT!" he said. Hilbert took a _Kingschap_ book from Simon's table and began to rip the pages out. He stomped all over the pages. Simon growled, jumped out of his chair, and lunged at Hilbert. The two of them began to fight. People at the bookstore looked in awe. One guy was filming the fight with his iPhone.

"Go ahead!" yelled Simon. "Put it on YouTube! Show the world what an arsemonger this fucking American is!"

Hilbert's friends tried to break up him and Simon, but to no avail. Finally, Hilda arrived at the bookstore. She saw that Hilbert was in trouble.

"Hilbert!" she yelled. "It's me, Hilda!"

Hilda quickly intervened and defended Hilbert by throwing herself in between. This didn't stop Simon - he just continued. Hilda then gave him a kick to the nuts. Simon moaned in pain.

"YOU BLOODY TROLLOP!" yelled Simon.

"Let's get out of here," said Hilda.

Hilbert and Hilda ran outside.

"SECURITY!" yelled Simon. "GET THOSE BASTARDS!"

Simon's bodyguards began to chase Hilbert and Hilda. As Hilbert and Hilda fled, the bodyguards gained on them. Soon, the bodyguards backed Hilbert and Hilda into a dark alley. Hilbert and Hilda cowered in fear, as they didn't have their Poke Balls on them. Then, suddenly, a strange head fell onto the ground and exploded, knocking the bodyguards unconscious. This allowed Hilbert and Hilda to escape. Little did Hilbert know that Murmur had rescued him.

Later that night, Hilbert and Hilda went back to the base. Hilbert's friends checked on Hilbert to make sure he was okay, and then went back to Aether Paradise.

Hilda noticed that Hilbert's mind was in pain.

"I don't know what came over me," said Hilbert.

"I think I know," said Hilda. "It was the toxins of that Ultra Beast! Man, this is even worse than I thought. I need to get you help."

"I think I need it too," said Hilbert, "but where are we going to get help?"

"I don't know," said Hilda. "I'll contact Wicke and ask her to help me out. For now...just stay out of trouble."

"Okay," said Hilbert.

Meanwhile, back at the bookstore...

"I can't believe that vulgar beast kicked you in the bollocks," said Binky.

"That bloody imbecile thinks he can get away with humiliating me?" said Simon. "This is why I can't bring myself to like Americans."

"I agree," said Binky. "I don't know why we even bother with these book signings."

"I don't know why either," said Simon. "I hope I never see Hilbert again. On the flip side, it will give me inspiration for my books!"


	33. The Shadows

**CHAPTER 33: THE SHADOWS**

The next day, Hilbert was unwilling to do anything - he just stayed at the base and cried.

Hilda came over to see Hilbert. She felt sorry about what had happened the other day.

"Hilbert," said Hilda, looking at Hilbert. "Are you okay?"

Hilbert shrugged and turned away.

"Listen," said Hilda. "I get why you're sad, but it's not good to hide from everyone"

"It's just not fair!" cried Hilbert. "People like Lusamine and Simon can do anything they want and get away with it no matter how much it hurts others! This world is full of evil, greedy, selfish people like them! What's my purpose in life - to get crushed and beat down? I'm such a coward. Maybe I'm not worthy of the Aether Foundation."

Hilda sat down beside Hilbert.

"Don't say that, Hilbert," said Hilda. "I know what happened last night and what happened with Lusamine didn't go well, but that doesn't mean you should give up. I know you're strong, and you can stand up to bullies. Remember when we stood up for N after Ghetsis tried to dispose of him?" Hilbert nodded.

"You think so?" said Hilbert.

"I know so," said Hilda. "I've known you for twenty years, and I know you have a good heart. And as for Lusamine, Simon, Sebastian, and others you've had issues with, who cares what they think? They don't know the real you."

Hilbert wiped his eyes.

"I feel like I've lost so much confidence," he said.

"That's why I'm here," said Hilda. "I can help you gain it back."

"I know," said Hilbert. "But what if I mess up again? I don't want to let you down."

"You won't let anyone down," said Hilda. "No matter what happens, your Aether Foundation friends, your friends back home, your family, and me will always love you."

Tears still fell from Hilbert's eyes, although now instead of sad tears, they were happy tears.

"Thank you, Hilda!" said Hilbert, hugging Hilda.

"You're welcome," said Hilda.

That night, Hilbert called Wicke. He told her that he was going to be resuming his usual Aether Foundation duties. So the following day, Hilbert suited up and went back to work at Aether Paradise. He even got to see Snowdrop and Rosella again. Cut to Hilbert feeding Snowdrop.

"Meep meep!" said Snowdrop, munching on a Poke Bean.

"Bzzz!" said Rosella.

"You two are so adorable!" said Hilbert.

Ricardo and Emil walked up to Hilbert.

"Glad to have you back, Hilbert," said Ricardo.

"We really missed working with you," said Emil.

"I missed working with you too," said Hilbert. "When you haven't done anything in weeks, you're just craving to go back to work." He turned to Ricardo. "Any gossip around Aether Paradise lately?"

"Oh yes," said Ricardo. "There's been quite a bit of gossip. Sebastian has been disappearing for hours on end, only returning at night. He hasn't talked to anyone besides Lusamine and Faba in over a week."

"Wow..." said Hilbert.

"What's more is that there were some strange sightings these past few days," said Ricardo.

"Of Ultra Beasts?" asked Hilbert.

"No," said Emil.

Allison and Kiana approached the three guys.

"I talked to Molayne this morning," said Allison, "and he said that yesterday he saw three strange-looking people with white hair and black costumes. He also said that they moved very fast and could appear and then disappear with extremely swift movements."

"Other people have seen them too," said Kiana, "and they vanish whenever someone tries to get close or to take a picture. They seem to appear most often at sunset."

Hilbert gasped.

"The Shadow Triad!" he said.

"Who are they?" asked Kiana.

"They're a trio who used to work for Team Plasma," said Hilbert. "They're fiercely loyal to its boss Ghetsis. The real question is what are they doing in Alola? Ghetsis has been on the run for several years now and I've never heard rumors of him being here."

"Maybe they could be looking for him," said Ricardo.

"That's true," said Hilbert. "No one really knows where Ghetsis is. Anyway, I've met the Shadow Triad, and they're extremely dangerous. Their ninja-like movements have helped them evade capture - or anyone trying to talk to them. Heck, even photographs of them are rare."

"This isn't good," said Allison. "Anyway, Hala, Olivia, and Nanu - the kahunas - are all helping with the investigation. They've warned people to report any suspicious movements."

Even Snowdrop and Rosella seemed to be aware of the discussion, and Snowdrop hid away in fright.

"I've got to notify Hilda," said Hilbert. "This seems to be very serious. I mean, even I don't know what the Shadow Triad is capable of."

"Is Lusamine aware of this?" asked Emil.

"She's been suspiciously silent on the whole ordeal," said Ricardo.

Hilbert froze.

"Wow..." he said.

"I know how you feel," said Ricardo. "I feel like I'm losing trust in her."

"I've already lost all my trust in her," said Hilbert.

"You and me both," said Kiana.

"I'm going to investigate," said Hilbert. "But for now, I'll do my job. It's been weeks since I've worked."

Everyone laughed - even some of the Pokemon did.


	34. Simon Strikes Again

**CHAPTER 34: SIMON STRIKES AGAIN**

For the next two days, Hilbert worked happily at the Aether Paradise. He managed to get quite a bit of work done, and was able to catch up a little with his employees. He was relieved that Cesar had covered for him and gotten down all the notes he needed to do.

On the third day, Hilbert, dressed in his Aether Foundation uniform, was walking down the streets of Malie City with Hilda. The two were on their way to Malie Garden, where Hilbert was going to study the local Meowth.

"I'm glad you're working again," said Hilda. "It will keep you occupied for the time being."

"I agree," said Hilbert. "I'm glad I did too. I figured I'd tune out Lusamine's less appealing traits and enjoy my experience."

"I think that's a great idea," said Hilbert.

"And the good thing is that today is Simon Blanchflower's last day in Alola," said Hilbert, "and I haven't run into him at all since that little outburst at the bookstore. I've checked online, and people seem to have forgotten about the whole thing. I know it's kinda weird, since in this day and age people love sharing everything on social media and people don't forget."

"I know," said Hilda. "People have their lives ruined because of stuff they said on social media years ago."

"Thankfully not everyone is like that," said Hilbert. "I wonder where everyone is."

After a few minutes, Hilbert saw Ricardo. He noticed that Ricardo didn't seem to be too happy.

"Hi, Ricardo," said Hilbert. "What's wrong?"

"It's Simon!" said Ricardo.

"Oh great," said Hilbert. "What is he doing this time?"

"He and his goons are beating up someone!" said Ricardo.

"Who are they beating up?" asked Hilbert.

Suddenly, Hilbert heard a scream. He recognized it to be Molayne.

In the meantime, Simon Blanchflower and his goons were cornering Molayne in an alley. Simon's goons threw Molayne to the ground, and beat and kicked him. Molayne was screaming all the while. Simon just stood there smirking at Molayne's suffering.

"STOP IT!" screamed Molayne. "STOP IT!"

"That's what you get for your insolence and impertinence, you American prole!" snapped Simon.

"If I had my Pokemon on me, I'd teach you a lesson!" cried Molayne.

"But you don't, do you?" said Simon.

"What you're doing is illegal!" cried Molayne. "You can't just..."

"SILENCE!" yelled Simon. "Men! Restrain this animal. He's had enough beatings for now." Simon then tied up Molayne, took off one of Molayne's shoes, and put it in his mouth. "That way you can't tell the police on us, you peasant." Molayne tried to yell at Simon, but he couldn't speak. "Now continue your beatings, but don't kill him."

The goons continued to beat up Molayne. Tears fell from Molayne's eyes.

Hilbert, Hilda, and Ricardo arrived at the horrific scene before it was too late.

"That's enough!" said Hilbert.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" asked Hilda.

Simon's goons slammed Molayne towards the ground, but Ricardo caught him. Molayne coughed up the shoe, but was too frightened to speak.

"What am I doing?" said Simon. "This pleb told me how I was 'ignorant' and 'racist' because of my books."

"Huh?" said Hilbert.

"Well, that is true," said Hilda. "I've read your books and they really do imply a bigoted author."

"Now back off from Molayne or I will call the police on you!" said Hilbert.

"You wouldn't dare!" said Simon.

"Or better yet," said Hilbert, "I'll report you to customs officials and they'll deport you and your wife."

"But we're leaving tomorrow, you wanker," said Simon.

"Why do you have those goons anyway?" said Hilbert. "Are you too cowardly to fight yourself?"

Molayne groaned and grunted.

"Don't worry. Molayne," said Hilbert. "We'll get you out." Hilbert unbound Molayne. In the meantime, Emil, Allison, and Kiana had all arrived at the scene. They looked angrily at Simon. Simon knew that he was going to be chewed out royally.

"What's wrong with you, Simon?" asked Allison. "Don't you realize that you could be arrested for beating someone up?"

Molayne was finally able to talk.

"I know," he said. "This is an outrage."

"What happened that made him want to beat you up?" Hilbert asked Molayne while putting Molayne's shoe back on his foot.

"Here's how it started," said Molayne. "I saw Simon and his wife while I was at the cafe. The two of them were laughing and talking crap about people who live here. They were referring to the locals with derogatory terms. It was really hard for me to stomach, but I ignored them. But when they referred to Professor Kukui as a 'dark servant boy', I took offense. Me and Professor Kukui are close friends - we took the Island Challenge together when we were kids. I confronted Simon and told him that what he said was racist. He then responded by calling me a pleb and a mutant and spewing profanity at me. I tried telling Simon and his wife that they should be considerate, but they wouldn't listen. So I ignored them. About an hour later, when I was taking a walk, Simon's goons jumped me and began to beat me up. And that's where Simon showed up."

"LIES!" yelled Simon. "DON'T LISTEN TO HIM!"

"I believe Molayne," said Kiana. "I know Molayne pretty well - I took the Island Challenge the same time as him - and I know that Molayne isn't a liar."

Hilbert sighed.

"Simon," said Hilbert, "do you think this is how you're going to earn respect? By going after anyone who dares to call you out on something?"

"Why should I listen to you?" said Simon. "You're a vulgar little American piece of shit!"

"I'm not playing any more games," said Hilbert. "I'm not crying anymore. I'm ready to face you like a man and tell you that if you don't adjust that attitude of yours, you're going to end up alone and miserable. So do us all a favor and please cut the shit out. Why are you even visiting America if you hate it so much?"

"Yeah," said Ricardo, "why?"

"If you're so goddamn xenophobic," said Hilda, "why do you even travel?"

"Listen, you ignorant Americans," said Simon, "I've had enough of your bullshit!"

"And we've had enough of you," said Hilbert. "So do us all a favor: either you and your trophy wife go back to your hotel and get ready to leave tomorrow, or we spill the beans to Binky and your goons."

"We did a little of our own digging," said Emil, "and we found that you have a mistress. Her name's Tilde, and she's a dancer from Sweden."

Simon lost all sense of self-control at this point.

"YOU LITTLE BASTARDS!" said Simon. "I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL KILL ALL OF YOU! GOONS, GET THEM!"

Molayne screamed as he braced for more beatings, but before Simon's goons could beat the group up, Hilda sent out her Braviary and ordered him to blow them away.

"I warn you," said Hilda, "back off from us."

"Now get lost!" said Hilbert.

"ALL RIGHT!" yelled Simon. "I've had enough of you wankers anyway." Simon stormed off. When he reached his wife Binky, he told her what he wanted to. "Binky! Get ready to leave. We are never, EVER going to Alola again!"

"I'm with you, dearie," said Binky. "They're so lower-class."

And that was the end of that. Hilbert and Hilda helped Molayne up.

"Are you okay, Molayne?" asked Hilda.

Molayne sighed.

"Yes," he said, "I'm fine. Thank you."

"I'm sorry this had to happen," said Hilbert.

"I know..." said Molayne. "I'm just glad nothing's broken."

"We'll take you home," said Hilbert.

"Thanks," said Molayne. "I've had enough excitement for one day. I just want to go home and rest."

And so Hilbert, Hilda, and the group took Molayne home. After that, Hilbert and his friends returned to Aether Paradise.


End file.
